Set me free
by BakaRyuuChan
Summary: NaLu AU: When Lucy found an intruder in her garden she took it upon herself to deal with the situation. Little did she know that the following encounter would become the prelude to a much grander tale than any she had ever read about...
1. Chapter 1

Life was not all it was cracked up to be, the young lady thought gloomily. With a wistful sigh she rested her chin atop the folded arms and gazed up towards the sky, savoring the chill of polished marble of the balustrade beneath her fingers and the exquisite shivers the wind sent along her skin. Night had long since fallen and the castle grounds lay quiet without a soul around to disturb the peace. Though the day had been dreary and gray with pregnant clouds hanging low over the horizon, threatening with rain without ever relinquishing a single drop, a breeze had picked up during the evening hours that scattered the heavy blanket and made the trees in the garden below sigh and stir restlessly.

Through the tattered tears a few stars twinkled against the midnight backdrop, but while their light was welcome and she wished for even clearer skies, it also made her sad.

It was such a distant glow, as removed from the earthly world as she from the city that sprawled across the bottom of the valley and the far mountains that towered up in the distance; as separated from them by high walls and strict rules as the celestial lights were from her gaze. The sight reminded her too much of everything she wished for but couldn't have, of all the dreams and desires she would never be able to realize. Her path had been decided for her from the moment she was born, dictated by status and tradition, rules and conventions.

No matter how much she wished that she could be like the people in the lower districts, free to go where she pleased and act as she wished, it just... wasn't going to happen. She was a princess of the realm, she was different from the rest, and with the fortune of her status came responsibilities that had to be fulfilled - or so her tutors loved to preach.

Sighing once more the girl tore her gaze away from the sky, straightening up as she tightened the shawl around her shoulders. Summer was well on its way but the night wind was still cold, enough so that she wished she'd had the sense to put something more over the elegant, foot long nightgown before leaving her chambers. It was bad enough that she was roaming the castle grounds without escort or permission - if anyone found her walking outside with little more than a folded square of silk to preserve modesty there would be no end to the scoldings, preachings or punishments. Pressing her lips together in mingled anxiety and defiance the girl began to turn, half intent on going back inside yet still reluctant to cut short her precious moment of freedom.

Just then, in the very periphery of her vision, a movement in the shadowed garden below caught her attention and made her pause. Had it been a cat?

No, there it was again. Decidedly too big to be a cat, or even a dog. Unless the head chef's big wolfhound had learned to walk on two legs, it had to be human.

Frowning slightly the young woman slipped behind one of the large potted ornament that stood scattered along the terrace, hoping that the cascades of fragrant white blossoms would be enough to obscure the pale cloth of her garb. She peered down into the gloom, curious despite the immediate pang of dread that settled like a weight in her belly. No one should be walking in the park at this hour and especially not this particular one, so close to the royal quarters. Guards manned the walls and patrolled the corridors at all hours, but not even they were allowed to be here.

Strictly speaking she wasn't supposed to be there either, and that just made this intrusion all the more peculiar.

With bated breath Lucy squinted through the deep shadows, torn between gratitude and annoyance at the lack of light from the sky. The castle behind her was dark and quiet, a looming mass of piled rock that reminded more of a man made mountain than a dwelling fit for habitation. Its many towers and turrets expressed a stern elegance in their strive towards the sky, one that went ironically well with the strict laws that governed the country. The precious few windows that remained lit did no more to aid her vision than the gleaming lights of the city below, too distant to be of use.

Yet, even though it was hard to make out more than the silhouettes of pruned trees and well-ordered flowerbeds, she thought herself able to see a skulking shadow move across the far end of the lower yard. It moved smoothly, so silent in its stealthy dance from bush to tree to garden wall that she would have thought it little more than a trick of the light had it not been for the rough person-like shape it possessed.

The princess teased the lower lip with her teeth as she considered what to do.

Common sense told her that this was not good, a stranger was sneaking around in the castle with heavens knew what purpose and no one except her knew about it. By rights she should warn someone, run off now while she had a chance and alert the guards. But... that would mean revealing that she had been out alone, un-escorted, without permission and going against every rule she'd ever been taught. It might well mean the end of her freedom, such as it was, and the thought of having her doors locked every night with herself trapped like a bird in a cage was unbearable.

The problem was, this meant she would have to deal with the situation on her own somehow. Just leaving them to their own devices was unthinkable, so she would have to confront an intruder, possibly a dangerous one at that, and with neither weapon nor backup... it was a downright stupid idea.

So why was it that, as she slowly began inching along the marbled balustrade towards the steps that led down towards the terraced lawns, hunched down to make herself as inconspicuous as possible, her stomach felt knotted with not only fear but a fluttering tickle of excitement? This was idiotic, she would likely get herself killed, she'd get into so much trouble... yet it was the closest thing to an adventure she'd had since she'd snuck down to the stables to see a newborn foal...

Lucy tried her best not to reminisce on the consequences of _that_ particular venture as she pressed on, stomach full of butterflies and lead.


	2. Chapter 2

Keeping an eye on the intruder as well as moving without making noise was hard, yet somehow the princess managed to get down from the tiled pathway without being seen. Hurrying on bare feet across the dew-wet grass she flitted from bush to bush toward a stone wall that sectioned off toward the lower terrace, suspecting that the intruder would try to get over it; they had been moving steadily towards the castle all this time, effectively avoiding the graveled paths and pale marble stairs. Heart pounding and slightly out of breath she hunched down as she reached her goal, hands balled into tiny fists to keep the fingers from trembling as she strained her ears to listen.

She could hear them now, so close were they. With bated breath she listened to soft footfalls and the rustle of grass and leaf, the sound of even breathing as they stopped just beneath her, a deep breath releasing into a quiet sigh - the person must be resting, preparing for the next move. The girl thought she'd crawl out of her own skin as she after a nerve wracking pause heard the scrape of boots against rock and curses muttered under breath.

Teeth clenched to prevent them from clattering she waited, waited, listening in exalted terror as the shadowed intruder scaled further and further up the wall.

Finally, the fleshy smack of a palm against the smooth top of the wall alerted her and like a tightly coiled spring the girl flew up on her feet and shot her hands out to shove at the monstrous creature her mind had painted the person out to be. Faintly registering the surprised look on a very human face she heard a distinctly male voice swear as he toppled backwards, the foul language followed by a distressed 'Whoa!' and a crash as he landed on the ground below, only somewhat cushioned by a thorny bush below.

Heart racing and head spinning the girl heaved herself halfway up on the waist-high wall and peered down, eyes wide as she stared at the figure below, hardly able to believe that her plan had actually worked. For a moment she hung there dumbstruck, mind blank with shock at the thought that she had killed someone - then a groan and the sound of breaking twigs snapped her back to her senses and alerted her to the gravity of the situation.

He wasn't dead. While the thought instilled the young lady with immense relief, it also made her situation all the more precarious. Not only did he know that she was there now, he likely would also be angry.

Trembling slightly she slipped down from the wall and began to run towards the stone steps that lead down to the lower level, barely feeling the pain in her soles as the gravel of the path cut into her feet. Her mind was racing, struggling frantically to come up with something, anything that would give her an advantage.

Bordering on panic she only stopped to hastily pick up a roughly arm-long stick from one of the flowerbeds, without the faintest idea what purpose it had served or what she would do it now. With thin fingers clutched tightly around the wood she ran over to the smashed bush just as the stranger rolled down onto the grass with a wince. His voice was quiet and hushed, yet still managed to sear the air with low, intense swears as he gingerly pushed himself up on hands and knees.

"Don't move!" the princess exclaimed and held out the stick with both hands, poised like a sword before her. She held her head high and stared down her nose at him with an imperious expression on the face, hoping against hope that he wouldn't notice the hitch in her voice or how her knees trembled under the flowing skirt. The girl had to force herself not to take a step back as he looked up, face indistinct and blurry in the gloom. There was no mistaking the fresh cuts and scrapes that littered his skin however, nor could she possibly miss the trickle of blood that searched its way from the hairline... or the sharp annoyance of the brows that furrowed upon noticing her.

"Huh? Who the hell are you?" The man hardly seemed interested despite the impatient snap of the voice, barely even glancing at the - admittedly rather pathetic - stick in her hands before he disregarded the order and got to his feet. Raising a hand to the forehead he rubbed calloused fingers against the cut, held it out before him so he could see and swore again when noticing the dark, wet liquid that smeared across them.

"That's none of your concern!" she declared, struggling to maintain some semblance of composure even as she was blatantly ignored - ignored! No one had ever done that before, at least not anyone that was clearly beneath her, like this ruffian definitely was. "You're trespassing, I have every right to.."

"You're dangerous, man! Who the hell goes around shoving people down walls, what if I'd died, huh? Look at this!" He interrupted her with a fierce glare and held up the blood-stained hand towards her face, voice sounding indignant. The princess opened her mouth and closed it again, at a loss for words.

"I, er... sorry. But you really shouldn't.."

"Sorry!?" This time he sounded surprised, peering at her through the gloom with an incredulous look on the face. "You're actually apologizing? That's got to be a first..." He moved towards her with long strides, head tilted curiously and appearing completely oblivious to the fact that he had been both discovered and interrupted in his mission, whatever it was. Pale-faced and wary the girl quickly backed away, almost tripping over the dragging hem of her nightgown in her hurry to create distance between them, and held up the stick in warning.

"Don't come any closer! I don't know who you are or what you want, but if you so much as raise a finger, I'll...!"

"You'll do what? Hit me with that?" The man stopped but what little she could make out of his face looked decidedly amused as he glanced from her to the stick, then back again. "I'm terrified."

"I'll scream!" she threatened with a glare, raising the stick a little higher. Before she had even begun to swing it at him however the intruder launched forth and grabbed hold of her with one hand while pulling the stick from her grasp with the other, spun her around and clamped down the bloodstained hand over her mouth - not hard, she realized even as she began to struggle against the hold, but so firmly that she couldn't make a sound and certainly not get away.

Not that she didn't try her damnedest. Fear and fury rose like bile in her throat as she wriggled and squirmed, struggling to free herself from the arm that kept her hands pinned along the sides and her back firmly against his chest. Oh, if she'd only been wearing the usual high heels right now, it would have been far more satisfying to dig those into his shins than her very bare, quite harmless feet...

"That wouldn't be very fun" the man said calmly, maintaining his hold on her with insulting ease that was almost as infuriating as the thoughtful way he looked down on her. He wasn't that much taller than her, she realized with some surprise, nor did he seem very old. This close to his face she was able to perceive youthfully smooth skin and angular features and a peculiar slant to the eyes that looked as foreign to her eyes as the slightly darker skin-tone. She frowned back as he kept looking at her, eyes flashing angrily; he grinned, seemingly amused, flashing her an impressive set of white teeth that looked disturbingly sharp and pointed.

It only made the girl struggle harder, to the point where the man clicked his tongue impatiently and rolled his eyes.

"Calm down, I won't eat you. I'd even let go if I thought you wouldn't do anything stupid" he said, "but somehow I don't think you're the type to quietly obey. You've made this far more complicated than I thought it'd be..."

He quieted and scowled a bit, blinking and squinting as the trickle of blood from his scalp began to drip into an eye. A sudden, rather surprising tang of guilt at the sight made the girl go still. Didn't that hurt? It had to hurt, and yet the man was standing there as effortlessly as if he'd just gotten out of bed in the morning, utterly unperturbed by the bizarre situation or his injuries.

Swallowing down a lump in the throat and almost gagging on the smell of blood that oozed from the hand over her mouth, the girl slowly pried a hand free and reached for her shawl. The man raised an eyebrow as she pulled it from the shoulders and held it up towards him, making a small gesture towards the wound. He hesitated, eying her warily through narrowed lids as though trying to read her thoughts. Then the hands that held her disappeared, relinquishing their hold to accept the scarf.

"Thanks."

She shook her head quietly and stepped away, watching with growing guilt as he wiped the blood from his eyes, quickly folded the cloth and wound it tightly around the head, securing it with a knot that left enough cloth left over to fall like ribbons down his back. She couldn't decide whether she thought it looked silly or not and had to look away and bite her cheek to keep from laughing - a panicked, borderline insane sound that was not going to help. 


	3. Chapter 3

It felt as though she had lost all control over the situation. Fear and unease still coiled like slippery eels through her insides, yet for some reason she had yet to let out the scream that clogged her throat. Nor did she try to run - though this was probably more a result of that common sense again. No doubt she would be caught before she'd gotten very far, and who knew what the man would do to her this time. Not just hold her back and keep her quiet, surely. Sighing quietly the girl rubbed her arms against the sudden chill and regretted that she'd left her room at all that night.

"You're not allowed to be here" she eventually said and gave the man a sideways glance. He kept trying to wipe more blood off first his face and then the hands, with little success.

"I know." He looked back at her with a grin, looking so mischievously pleased with himself beneath the smear of blood that she had a hard time stifling a giggle - again. Swallowing nervously she managed a trembling smile, cursing the stomach that kept turning anxiously. The situation was so ridiculous! How could he stand there looking so relaxed? It was unfair, especially as her attempts at expressing calm composure failed miserably.

"Why are you..." she started, then changed her mind and bit her lip uncertainly. Did she really want to know? What if he was here to hurt someone, what if he was a bad guy - well clearly he was a bad guy but what if he was evil and she had to call the guards after all, making all this a complete waste of time? She almost thought it would be better not to know.. but he didn't seem willing to let her remain ignorant, instead awarding her with full - if brief- attention.

"Why I'm here?" he willingly filled in, before finally starting to look around with the kind of wariness she'd thought would be prudent to maintain all the time when breaking and entering. "A dare."

"A dare!?" she repeated, incredulous as he was nonchalant. Realizing how loud she must have been from the dark glare he shot her, the princess clasped her hands tightly over her mouth and took another step back, not relaxing even when the man blinked and looked away.

"Yup. Some jerk I happen to know had the nerve to tell me I'd never be able to get into the castle without being caught, so I told him I'd do it in a night and show him proof of it too."

"What kind of proof?" the girl asked between pale fingers, eyes narrowing suspiciously at him.

"I don't really know yet" he said with a shrug, then reached out as suddenly as he had before and dragged her off towards the wall he'd previously tried to scale, making her sit down next to it before hunching down himself.

"What are you..!?"

"Better not stand around where anyone can see" he said. "You kind of stand out, that dress glows like a torch." Pausing for a moment he then frowned, looking her over a bit more thoroughly. "Who are you anyway? What are you doing here?"

She felt her eyebrows rise, honestly surprised that he could be so ignorant. Sure, the whole idea of doing something so stupid as risking ones life over pointless taunts was simpleminded to the extreme, but she couldn't believe there were people around that didn't recognize their own royal family. Purely aside from her face being printed on all the silver coins in the kingdom of Firoe...

"I live here" she replied coolly, "and since I'm not the one trying to break into someone's home, I don't think I have any obligation to offer my name to anyone who's too ignorant to know it already."

It was rather satisfying to see the guy grimace and rub the back of his neck with a rough hand - apparently her remark had struck home.

"... Natsu" he muttered after a reluctant silence. "Name's Natsu... I'm not really from around here, just passing through town."

As she'd thought. Most of the people in the country were fair haired and pale skinned, much like herself. The differences between them weren't glaringly obvious, just about enough that she started a bit whenever she gave him a closer look.

"My name is Lucy" she offered with a courteous nod, expecting him to react like everyone else did; with a start, staring eyes, bowed heads and annoying humility. When he did neither of them, daring to show no sign of recognition at all, she huffed a bit and folded her arms across the chest, peeved as much by his lack of knowledge as by her own relief - it almost felt _good_ to be unknown. Almost. More importantly, it made some of the flutter in her stomach settle along with the lingering fear that he had come to harm her. Not that she trusted him, oh no... but maybe she didn't have to be scared out of her mind.

* * *

><p>"So... why aren't you screaming?"<p>

The question caught her off guard. Glancing briefly over at the burglar she shifted a bit, pulling the knees up against the chest - there would be grass stains on her gown, she realized, and wondered with a pang of unease how she'd manage to explain them away in the morning.

"I don't know" she admitted after a while, rubbing a nervous hand across the face; Natsu's blood was starting to dry on her skin, annoying her with the itching and the thought of how ridiculous it must look. "You're not... what I would have expected of a burglar."

She heard him chuckle quietly and frowned in displeasure, refusing to look in his direction. Really, she ought to scream. Lucy was shocking herself with how easily she was accepting the situation. Out in the dark of night, sitting in the grass with a complete stranger who'd not only bled on her but was laughing at her as well. Yet... somehow the thought of handing him over to the guards and her fathers so called justice was distasteful, not to mention that she had no desire whatsoever to explain the situation and her own chosen course of action. The mere thought of what her father would say made her shudder.

"You should go back" she said after a long silence, finally looking up at him again. Natsu frowned, looking displeased.

"No way, I've come this far!"

"You got caught though" she pointed out, "so technically you already lost that bet."

He frowned even deeper at that, the reluctance so plain that she finally couldn't help herself anymore; pressing a hand over her mouth she tried to stifle a giggle, though he clearly must have heard it judging by the indignant face he made at her.

"I can't leave without proof!" he complained, looking severely put off. "Besides, I don't call this being caught; a girl with a stick isn't much of a threat."

"Oh you..!" She gasped in outrage, quickly opening her mouth to object; a sudden hand over her mouth quickly silenced her again however. Natsu's face split in a wide smirk as he laughingly hushed her.

"Shh, don't be so loud" he chuckled, "or you'll attract the guards."

Lucy jerked her head away and glared at him, cheeks blotchy with indignation and eyes shooting daggers at the laughing face.

"There are no guards here to listen" she snapped with a tetchy glare, "and even if there were they're usually too busy prattling amongst themselves to pay attention to anything else. You'd have to actually scream for anyone to hear anything." Though as soon as she said it, Lucy rather wished she hadn't. With a single careless comment she had effectively taken away any advantage she had over this man, and it made the flutter of her stomach return full force. He didn't seem to notice however.

"Why aren't there guards here?" Natsu asked with a puzzled expression. "I had to dodge plenty of them before I got to this point. I thought they'd be standing at every gate all the way."

"You really don't know?" she said, again surprised by his sheer lack of information. "This garden is a part of the kings quarters..." Noticing his nonplussed expression she rolled her eyes and got to her feet, gesturing for him to do the same. Backing off a bit so she could look up at the castle, she gestured to the part that was closest to them.

"See that wing and the wall with all the windows? That entire section, from the basement all the way up to the tower, as well as this garden all the way down to the outer wall, is where the king and his family lives. No one is allowed here, not even the guards. They patrol the corridors and the areas around it all, but the grounds themselves are off limits. Honestly, I'm surprised you managed to get all this way without realizing."

Looking back at the man, she found him staring at her with a strange expression on his face. Lifting a brow in question, she was met with nothing but silence and such a long, intense stare that Lucy found herself backing off a bit, shoulders tensing as if to shield herself.

"What?"

"Well..." He reached up and pulled a hand through the hair, making the short fuzz stand in all directions; it was hard to tell what color it was, the dim night had a way of dying everything in shades of gray - at least it wasn't black or blonde, but that was as much as she could tell. "Aren't you in trouble too, if no one's supposed to be here? I mean, if the royals are the only one's allowed..."

Folding her arms across the chest again, she gave him a small, almost pitying smile.

"I told you... I live here."

"But..." She could almost hear the gears tick as Natsu looked from her, to the castle, then back to her again. She wished she'd had a bell to ring when his eyes finally widened, whether in shock or surprise or whichever was hard to tell. "You're related to the king!?" he almost shouted, an odd sort of excitement dancing in his eyes.

She couldn't help but smile at him, hard-pressed not to laugh. Was he really dense, or just so caught up in his own way of thinking that any eventual intelligence simply was too foreign for regular people to understand? Then again, Lucy had to admit that she didn't really match the description of a noble lady at the moment. They weren't known to take late night strolls in their nightgowns, barefoot at that, or shove people into bushes. In fact, had she seen herself as she pounced a stranger with nothing to aid her but determination and a wooden stick...

But at that thought her smile died, the mirth fading slowly as her situation became apparent to her once more. Her gaze turned back to the castle more grimly this time, and after a moment she sighed and nodded in answer to Natsu's question.

"He's my father" she said quietly.

"You're a _princess_? That's awesome!" the boy exclaimed, still with that peculiar liveliness dancing about him. Lucy tried to smile again but it came out as more of a grimace; she gave up and went back to the wall, sinking down into the grass with her back leaned against the cold stone.

"Is it?" she said tonelessly, tugging at the grass with restless fingers.

"Yea it is!" he persisted, following after her but remained standing with arms gesturing wildly as if to emphasize his point. "You get to eat tons of good food and people do whatever you say..." He broke off as she snorted, looking confused. "What, you don't get food?"

"Oh, I have good food" she said, "and pretty clothes and jewelry and things. But I'm not allowed to go anywhere, I can't do anything without a flock of people following me around, I have to mind my manners and speak appropriately and heaven _forbid_ if I ever mention wanting to do something that could be seen as inappropriate. 'A lady must know her place and act according to the expectations of the people, and a princess must be a model for the ladies themselves'..."

She flung out her hands in exasperation, unintentionally pulling up a handful of weeds in the process. Grimacing she opened her fingers and let the severed strands fall to the ground; she'd riled herself up without even intending to. It was hard to look up at Natsu, who's face had grown serious, almost solemn as he listened. He hunched down before her, elbows resting at the knees as he regarded her. She couldn't tell what he was thinking, his face was strangely hard to read. Sometimes it was vivid with emotion and other times as blank and closed as ice over a pond at winter. It didn't exactly help that she didn't know him at all.

"What do you want to do?" he asked rather quietly, head tilting to the side in a way that could indicate curiosity - she wasn't sure, and didn't know why it mattered.

"I... no, it doesn't matter, it won't happen anyway." Lucy tried to wave it off, but he didn't react, simply continued to look at her with infuriating patience. The blonde leaned closer to the wall, feeling pressured; why did it matter to him anyway?

"You don't know that. Come on, tell me."

He looked so calm, so honestly interested. Lucy squirmed where she sat, struggling with herself and the barriers she always hid her own desires behind. A quick glance at the man's face left her gaze trapped in his, soft brown eyes held captive by onyx so intense and determined and kind that she felt a shiver run down the spine while something within her chest clenched painfully.

"I..! I want to leave this castle!" she finally blurted out, hating how effortlessly he tore down her walls. Without even trying they came tumbling down before him, brick by miserable brick until her dreams lay bared and exposed.

"I've spent my whole life behind these walls and if my father get his way - which he will, since he's the king - I will not leave until I'm old and gray, if then. He decided what I've been taught, he's deciding what I'm allowed to do now and he's going to choose who I marry, and no doubt when I'm allowed to _die_ too! He never listens to what I say and the only time he even notices my existence is to give me new orders."

This was bad, she was starting to break down. Sucking in deep breaths Lucy tried to suppress the feeling of despair, blinking her eyes furiously to stave off the tears she knew would threaten to fall if she relaxed. Slinging the arms around her knees she balled herself up as tightly as she could, trying to look everywhere except at the young man before her. Despite her best efforts however her gaze kept returning to him; it was hard not to feel resentful when considering it was his fault that she was feeling this torn up. If he hadn't been sneaking around where he shouldn't be she would be back in bed now, securely shielded behind her complacent mask. Not sitting in the cold grass with threadbare dignity, trying her best not to cry.

To top it off, the only reaction she was getting to her words was a continued look of interest that demanded more in all but words.

"Leave.. and do what?" Natsu asked again, seeming impervious to her baleful glares. The only reason she didn't try to sock him was that he seemed genuinely interested in hearing the answer - perhaps that was why she was telling him anything in the first place. Good listeners were hard to come by. Yet, this question was hard to answer somehow. She felt her cheeks go red as she thought about it, once again finding herself squirming to get out of answering.

"You'll laugh, so I don't want to say.." she mumbled, hiding away the face behind her knees.

"I won't laugh!" he protested, shifting position so that he sat cross legged in in the grass before her. Resting the hands against the ankles and leaning forward, he looked so earnest and intense that Lucy faltered once more. She opened her mouth, closed it again, repeated the process a few times. How had this even happened? One moment she tried her best to kill him and the next she was telling him about her most private thoughts and dreams. It was strange, it was stupid, it was... impossible to resist.

"Laugh and I'll hit you" she warned, chocolate eyes pregnant with ominous promise as she gave up, sighed and looked away, gaze trailing along the all too familiar outline of the gardens. "I... want to go on adventures. Learn magic, find dragons... see fairies..." she muttered, red in the face. For a moment there was silence; then, a half choked sound from the guy had her leaping at him fists balled, practically shrieking in anger.

"I'm not laughing, I'm not..!" he tried to protest as he leaned back, guarding his face with his hands to avoid her clumsy blows. But he was, and by the time he finally caught her wrists in a steady grip he was laughing so hard that he fell back into the grass. Standing on her knees over him she tried to tug herself free, or at least get a good punch in on his stupidly grinning face; but it was like trying to shift a wall, the hands weren't budging. In the end she had to give up and sat down, red as a peony in the face and back rigid with injured pride. She refused to look at Natsu, even as he calmed down and heaved himself back up - apparently he thought it prudent not to let go of her hands just yet, because his hold on her didn't relinquish - and she did her best to ignore him as he spoke up, somewhat out of breath after laughing so much.

"You're weird" he stated with a grin, something that only made her tense up even more - weird, her?! If anyone was strange here...! "I've never met someone as unfit to be a princess. You should just quit and leave!"

"You say it like its so easy!" she snapped, spinning back to stare at him so quickly that she almost toppled over. Natsu steadied her before she ended up face first in the grass, but rather than thank him she continued spluttering.

"Do you have any idea what a mess I'd make if I left? They'd send soldiers after me before I was out of the city and I'd be caught and dragged back before anyone even realized I was gone. I don't have anywhere to go and even if I did I'd bring nothing but grief to anyone who tried to..."

"Hey hey, calm down!"

Something in his tone of voice made her quiet, reluctantly at first but more intently as she noticed his expression change. There was a sort of mad, wild determination growing about him that sent a new kind of chill down her spine, a look not entirely unlike that exuberant mischief she'd seen before when he spoke of his 'prank' of sneaking into the castle.

"It's impossible" Lucy repeated weakly, hating herself for saying it out loud, for admitting that she had long since given up. "It'd take a miracle to even get out of the castle, let alone..."

"If you had a miracle, would you want to leave?" Natsu cut in before she could finish, making the girl puff her cheeks up indignantly.

"There's no way a miracle would..."

"Would you?"

She pouted again for being interruptes, but slowly, hesitantly, she nodded. What harm could come of being honest? It didn't feel like it was her body moving anyway, more like a puppeteer was pulling some string that made her head move up and down. Natsu didn't seem to notice or even care. Instead he got up to his feet and pulled her up, suddenly fierce eyes staring intently down into her own. She had no idea what this was about, somehow she couldn't think straight anymore.

"You really want to leave? Even if they send soldiers, even if you have to fight? It'd be hard, sure. Maybe even scary. If you had a miracle, would you take the chance?"

"I..." she croaked, taken aback by the sudden intensity of him. Lucy tried to move away but was immediately pulled back by a firm tug on her wrists, the hands around which were suddenly hard, hot, almost burning.

Swallowing hard she tore her gaze from his and threw a long, long look at the castle. To leave. To never have to go back. No more balls or lessons or flocks of people that smiled with glittering teeth and plotted against her as soon as she turned her back...  
>The very thought made her head spin with relief and before she could even finish the thought, before she even knew if she really meant it she had turned back and nodded, fervently, desperately.<p>

"You're sure?"

"Yes!"

"Then I'll give you a miracle."

Lucy stared at the man before her with eyes wide and shocked, lost for words.

Was he kidding?

Natsu grinned back ferociously and tugged at her arms again, making her stumble forward and almost fall into his chest. Bewildered she began to struggle backwards, embarrassed and confused, but with the same careless strength as before he easily slung an arm around her waist and held her firmly in place.

"What are you doing!?" she protested, blushing furiously. He was warm, she was only wearing her flimsy nightgown, she'd never been this close to any man except her father for as long as she could remember, her feet was bare and her thoughts had lost all focus and she really ought to replace that stick where she had taken it or the gardener would have a _fit_...

"I'm stealing you!" he laughed, and before she could comment on the absurdity of the statement a sound of tearing cloth broke the stillness of the night.

* * *

><p>Gasping in shock the girl stared down at the back of his shoulders, suddenly no longer smooth and covered in rough, dark fabric. Instead there were wings, large and leathery and covered in scales so red that not even the night could diminish the fiery hue. With a sound like quiet thunder they expanded, Lucy caught a glimpse of a thick, thorn-lined tail that slithered down behind his legs, thrashing to and fro in excitement.<p>

Then his grip tightened around her and with a jerk she found herself pulled from the ground, stomach sinking as she saw the ground spiral away below. Throwing away all pretense Lucy shrieked and grabbed hold of Natsu's shirt, found it a feeble support at best and clamped her arms around his neck instead. She closed her eyes tightly, even desperately, so she wouldn't have to see when they fell, when the inevitable impact with the ground would come. Trembling she clung on, moment after endless moment passing by.

Nothing happened.

"Relax, you're choking me!" she heard him shout, sounding strangled yet loud enough to drown out the rush of wind.

Lucy snapped the eyes open in shocked disbelief and turned the head as far as she could to look at him, face pale and lips trembling. To her great surprise he looked back and grinned, the wide smile even sharper and toothier than before, familiar yet so alien now that the skin around his eyes and along the jaw was covered in burning, crimson scales. Not to mention the horns that curved back over the hair, dark and sharp and decidedly not human. Hesitantly she relaxed her arms a little, though couldn't for all the stars in the sky get herself to release the grip entirely.

"You're a dragon!" she exclaimed, torn between laughter and tears and incredulous disbelief as she stated the obvious. So _that_ was the reason why he had been laughing so hard at her! Part of her was scared beyond all senses, fed as she had been with horror stories and midwife tales of all the dreadful things a dragon could and would do if given a chance - the rest was too intrigued and rattled by the sudden turn of events to care, it was something she would have to work out later if she ever got the chance.

Natsu just grinned back at her before straightening out in the air, wings beating heavily to keep them in place as he removed a hand from around her to point downwards - Lucy immediately tightened her slackened grip around his neck again and whimpered in fright, really really wishing he hadn't done that.

"Take a good look" he just said, making her squint down towards the ground.

They were incredibly, impossibly high up in the air, the castle little more than a toy house far down, surrounded by what looked like a swarm of golden fireflies. The lights of the city, she realized with awe. How small it looked! The blonde lady had always thought of it as vast, a sprawling mass with endless opportunities and things to envy. Now, this far removed, she felt a shudder ripple through her as the realization of how truly small it was, how insignificant her cage looked compared to the surrounding dark landscape.

Taking a deep breath she forced herself to look a bit longer, then turned away with a shudder and hid away her face against the side Natsu's neck. She felt him turn the head to look down at her but didn't move; not until he resumed the secure grip around her shoulders did she react at all.

When she finally did, her voice was quiet, almost frail.

"I don't have to go back?"

For a moment he was quiet, still as he could be while still holding them up in the air.

Then he shifted forward, tightened the grip around her almost imperceptibly and propelled them forward, away from the castle far below.

"Yeah", he said, almost softly. "I'll set you free."


	4. Chapter 4

They flew for a good portion of the night but it was still a few hours until dawn when Natsu circled down and landed on top of a steep hill crowned with tall grass and big rocks that rose high above the surrounding ridges. Lucy was relieved to feel solid ground beneath her feet and slumped down on top of one of the boulders that lay strewn into the grass like a giants discarded toys, too shaken by the sudden turn of events to even fully appreciate the strangeness of the situation.

Gazing out into the night she eyed the lights that gleamed some ways off in the distance. It was hard to fathom that it was the glow of the city where she had spent her entire life. Those lights seemed so very distant from here, even further away than the stars that glinted through the racing clouds, growing clearer and more widespread as a cold wind scattered the gray blanket that had rested over the valley for so long. Persistent gusts blew through the thin fabric of her nightgown and made her shiver, goosebumps running up and down every inch of her skin.

She could feel the dragon's eyes on her as he stretched and rubbed his shoulders but didn't turn, unsure what her expression might tell him if she looked at him now.

Accepting that she had actually left the castle was easy compared to the mess of tangled thoughts and emotions she felt when considering the revelation of Natsu's real identity. A dragon! It was like a fairy tale, a story come to life before her very eyes. Lucy was as thrilled as she was terrified, because without exception the tales she had been told were ones of violence and death, of dangerous magic and ferocious wrath that destroyed everything in its wake. That the smiling, playful idiot that had come sneaking through her garden actually was a dragon was just so hard to believe, even when she had the evidence right before her eyes.

"You okay, Lucy?"

The young woman turned her head slightly and nodded, though not entirely sure that it was true.

"I think so" she amended when she saw him raise a skeptical brow. "Just a bit... overwhelmed."

"Heheh, s'all good" Natsu grinned as he pulled himself up beside her, eyes darting quickly between the distant city and the girl. "We're not really safe yet, but by the time they realize you're gone we'll be far away."

He looked so pleased with himself that Lucy felt her mouth twitch from the desire to smile back. His words only reminded her of another problem however, one that made her sigh and shift uncomfortably on the cold, hard rock.

"I can't believe this is actually happening" she mumbled, leaning her chin against a knee as she pulled the legs up towards herself. "Closing my eyes is scary, I don't want to look up and realize it's all a dream."

"It's real!" the man assured immediately. "If you really think you're dreaming I can pinch you to prove it."

He tapped long, sharp claws together with soft clicks and chuckled when the girl immediately shook her head, a bit more vigorously than what was necessary. Swallowing slightly Lucy eyed the hand nervously, a lot more unsettled by the red scales and tapering talons than she wanted to let off. Not only that, but the horns on his head and the wings and the _tail_ too. They were hard to look at, and yet the gold-haired girl found her eyes returning to them again and again, unable to keep herself from staring.

"What?" Natsu seemed very amused by her scrutiny and made no attempts to hide it. Of course he had to notice it, even a blind person couldn't possibly miss her anxious fidgeting.

"Sorry" Lucy mumbled and snapped her head away, a slight blush creeping along her cheeks. "I just... I didn't know that dragons were... real."

"You scared?"

"No!" She spun around so quickly that she almost lost her balance, somehow able to steady herself before she slipped off the rock. The gaze she met was unexpectedly serious, far from the teasing mockery she had expected and it startled her almost as much as the new additions to his features. Lucy ran a tongue quickly over her lips, eyes moving unbidden to the crimson scales that lined his eyes, forehead and jaw, along the curved horns and back to the wings that twitched and shifted like they had a life of their own.

Under Natsu's steady, knowing eyes she found herself faltering, neck bending so she wouldn't have to meet his gaze.

"M-maybe... a little."

It galled her to admit it even to herself. Lucy thought she had gotten past fear once she had calmed down back at the garden, but this man was so full of surprises that she found herself reeling with alarm, fright and unease more often than she was calm and relaxed.

He managed it again by simply nodding when she had expected a look of hurt or a stream of reassurances. Those would have been understandable, but the easy grin he offered? Not so much. Didn't he care about being scary, or was it that he enjoyed having her on her toes?

"You'll get used to it" was all he offered, stifling a yawn behind a hand. "The world is big and full of strange things - if you really want to go hunting for fairies you'll stop being surprised after a while."

Lucy hummed but refrained from retorting, not quite in the mood to take the bait he so teasingly dangled at her. Clipping his jaws shut with a snap the dragon-man slipped down from the rock and began flattening the grass on the ground beneath his feet until a roughly circular patch had been drawn in the lush greenery, big enough for two to fit.

"Better get some sleep" the man suggested once he was satisfied, holding up a hand to offer Lucy help down from her perch where she had been watching him curiously. "Might be a few hectic days before things calm down, so take any chance you can to rest."

Graciously accepting his assistance Lucy nodded and slipped down from her seat, finding it very peculiar to lie down on the ground to sleep rather than crawling up into a bed. Settling into a comfortable position was hard, the ground was hard, the scent of grass and earth and wind was strong and foreign around her, and somehow she just couldn't ignore the reality of a man lying outstretched behind her back. The princess knew she should be tired after a long day and an even longer night, but though her eyes burned and her limbs felt heavy she was constantly interrupted by thoughts as clear and sharp as crystal. It certainly didn't help that the cold wind made her shudder, nor that the dragon kept laughing quietly at her restless tossing back and forth.

"First time sleeping outdoors?" he mumbled, sounding far more appropriately tired than she felt. Small wonder, considering how hard he must have worked to get into the castle without being discovered in the first place, the subsequent flight notwithstanding.

"Mmh. Ladies usually aren't expected to camp in the wild." Grimacing as a stone dug into her hip the girl shifted again, torn between the desire to stretch out for comfort and curl up for warmth.

"Better stop being a lady then. Sounds boring and impractical."

Lucy laughed quietly, quite agreeing. "Yes. I don't think I will ever get used to the cold though" she muttered, tucking her hands beneath the arms to stave off the chill of the wind. "A blanket now would have been...

...nice."

Even as she spoke she heard the soft rustle of grass as Natsu shifted behind her. Before Lucy could object he had inched closer and wrapped an arm around her while pushing her head down beneath his chin until the girl found herself quite trapped. She protested quite loudly with cheeks burning from shy embarrassment, but they were feeble at best and died away once his body-heat spread enough to make her shivers subside.

"Better?" Lucy could hear the amusement in his voice and would have squirmed with indignation if she'd been brave enough to move at all. It was undeniably warmer this way and having someone close by was comforting... the runaway just wished that the _someone_ hadn't been a big, strange, uncouth and very _male_ dragon.

She mumbled something indistinct and vaguely affirmative and puffed her cheeks in a pout when he laughed at her again.

"Good, now go to _sleep_. I'll wake you when it's time to leave."

"Mmh. Goodnight, Natsu." Saying his name was strange, though rather nice at the same time. Like a secret only she knew and wouldn't have to share with anyone else.

"Night, Lucy."

She felt him smile against her hair and quickly closed her eyes, wondering at the peculiar sensation that trickled down through her insides. Almost like a tickle but not quite the same, it left her with a lightheaded giddiness and a soft glow in the chest that warmed her almost as much as the dragon. Smiling timidly to herself the girl shifted slightly until she found a comfortable spot and allowed herself to relax, determined to get rid of as many ladylike traits as she could right away.

_So what_ if the women at court would gasp and faint if they ever found out that she was sleeping on the ground next to a complete stranger, and _so what_ if they would mutter with scandalized expressions if word got out that a man had slung a strong, warm arm around her waist and kept it there for a long while. So what if she _herself_ was blushing until her cheeks bruised, not knowing where to keep her legs and arms or whether it was alright to turn around so she could shield her stinging cheeks from the wind against Natsu's neck. At least she was warm and safe and far away from the constraints that had tied her down all her life, free from the shackles that had nearly suffocated her will and broken her spirit.

And if she were to stop being a lady, then she would gladly let go of all rules and taboos that had been ingrained in her from the moment she was born.

Almost defiantly Lucy _did_ turn around in the man's arms, and _did_ press her cold nose into the burning heat of his nape. She was so pleased with herself and so busy sinking into relaxation that she missed the dragon's small intake of breath and a sudden but brief stillness. When his arms tightened a smidgen around her Lucy just sighed contently, already drifting off even though thoughts kept reeling through her head.

She probably wouldn't get a good nights sleep, but sleep she did. Afterwards she would never quite remember why it had been so hard to settle down in the first place.


	5. Chapter 5

A hand clamped down hard over her mouth and jolted the girl awake. Her first instinct was to fight as unfamiliar surroundings swam before her bleary eyes, and it took several panicked moments before she registered the quieting hush of the man that pinned her down into the tall grass.

"Quiet!" he hissed into her ear as soon as recognition lit within her eyes, sparing only a short glance to make sure she would remain quiet before he let go. "People are coming."

Lucy grew rigid as her eyes widened, fear rekindling with double force. Pressing her own hands over the mouth she struggled to stay calm and inched after Natsu as he crawled across the ground to peer down the western slope of the steep hill.

He frowned when he noticed that she had followed but didn't say anything, just pressed the fair-haired head down closer to the ground so she wouldn't get seen. Pulse racing the princess peered down and watched as two men came walking towards them. In the pre-dawn gloom they looked like little more than hulking shadows draped in dark cloth that fluttered around booted legs as they walked.

Though they were still some distance away there was no way they wouldn't spot Natsu and herself if they stood, and judging by the way they kept their heads down and eyes on the ground they weren't very keen on being seen themselves. There was something very ominous about them that made unease settle like a weight in her stomach.

"Who are they?" she breathed anxiously and glanced sideways at the dragon, grateful for his hand on her head - if it hadn't been for the very real reminder of his presence she just might have panicked. "They can't be looking for me, can they?"

"Doubt it" Natsu replied, speaking into her ear again yet so quiet that she still barely made out the words. "Too soon. Looks like rogues... still not good to be seen."

He didn't take his eyes off the men even when speaking. They studied the men in silence for a while, Lucy desperately wishing that they would turn away, change direction and go somewhere else. But as time ticked by it became increasingly obvious that the rogues were headed straight towards them.

Natsu swore softly under breath. Lucy saw his eyes narrowing and felt the hand on her head tense for a moment, reluctance plain on his face. Then he pressed her head firmly down into the grass and shifted, feet planting firmly on the ground as he readied himself, muscles tense as a coiled metal spring.

"Stay here. Close your eyes."

Lucy wished she could have. But the moment his grip on her disappeared and he launched forth her head snapped back up, eyes locking on the figure that dashed down the hill with such speed it looked as though he wasn't even touching the ground. The men looked up and seemed almost as taken aback as the princess was, then they suddenly swore and threw the cloaks aside, grasping towards their hips to reach the heavy swords that hung from the belts. Only one had time to actually unsheathe the blade however before the dragon was upon them.

Lucy gasped and clasped a hand over the mouth in shock and horror as she saw a clawed hand lash out, a quick swipe towards the first persons throat resulting in a tearing sound and a cascade of blood, dark and faded in the gray light.

A gurgling sound erupted from him as he fell to his knees and collapsed into a pile on the ground, accompanied by a panicked curse from the remaining bandit. Lucy could see his hands tremble as he raised the sword in defense against the dragon, but even as he launched forward with a scream and a downward strike Natsu had moved, darting to the side and then forward once more to repeat the same swift, efficient strike towards the neck. There was another scream but it quickly faded into a choke as blood filled the throat, a muffled thud as the man fell to the ground.

Then there was silence.

The girl trembled violently as she pushed herself up to sit, hardly able to breathe. Brown eyes didn't part for a second from the frame of the man that knealt by his victims to wipe their blood from his hands and face with their cloaks. She wished the darkness could linger, that time could reverse and retrieve the blessedly obscure night so she wouldn't have to see the gruesome sight below so clearly. But dawn was as relentless as the dragon and spared no one, not even the princess who swallowed time and time again to fight back the nausea that gripped her as she saw the pools of crimson that slowly soaked the grass and seeped into the thirsty ground.

Numb with shock she saw Natsu examine the corpses, then stand and shake his head with a grim expression before he turned and came back up the hill. For every step he took towards her Lucy felt her heart beat faster until her own pulse raged like a violent drum in her head. Pale-faced she stared at the man as he stopped before her, face grave and impassive as he gazed back down at her.

There was blood on his face. Small red stains dotted the right jawline down to the neck, growing steadily larger and wetter as they crept down the shirt to chest and shoulder. The clawed hands had to be stained with it too, but against the bright red scales and sharp talons it was impossible to make out.

Natsu reached out a hand to help her up, quiet and solemn as he leaned down. The girl flinched and recoiled, eyes widening in fear when those deadly claws descended towards her. He paused in mid movement, a frown already tugging at the brows when he sighed and let the hand fall again.

"I didn't want you to see that." Natsu looked away and rubbed a hand against the side of his neck, restless fingers smearing the blood across the skin. "I can't blame you for being scared, I guess..."

A pang of guilt hit her like a slap in the face and made the gold-haired girl look down onto her shaking hands, unable to meet the dragons eyes. Saying that she wasn't afraid... would be a lie, even more now than it had been before. She was very frightened, so much that her knees wouldn't support her even if she did try to stand. Whenever she closed her eyes the scene of claws tearing open flesh replayed across the inside of the lids - she thought she could smell the heavy metallic stench of blood in the air, as though it reeked all the way up the slope and stood in a cloud around the man in front of her.

But Lucy didn't want to be afraid. Not of blood or thieves or shadows in the night, and especially not of the person who had freed her from her luxurious prison and kept her warm only moments ago. She wanted him to turn back into the smiling young man from the garden, to stop having claws and sharp teeth and dangerous eyes that darkened in determination as he went to take a life.

She wished he could stop being a dragon and be the human she had thought he was, so that she wouldn't have to tremble on the ground with his gaze weighing her shoulders down like a silent accusation... at least that was what it felt like.

But Natsu still remained a dragon when he hunched down on the spot, the movement causing her to snap the head up with compulsive need to see what he was doing, make sure he wasn't reaching for her again.

He didn't.

For the longest time the man just sat there and watched her quietly as the sun appeared on the horizon and dyed the world in shades of blue, peach and purple. The hair of the dragon shimmered in hues of brown and red that looked almost pinkish in the soft light. A part of her wanted to point it out, poke fun at it and see how he would react to her giggles... but she was too afraid to find out what kind of reaction it might be to do anything but sit there.

Slowly, very gradually the trembling faded away. There was still tension in her limbs and caution in her eyes, but Natsu sat so perfectly still that even her panicked mind eventually had to relinquish and admit that he didn't look like he was about to kill her anytime soon. A small trembling sigh escaped through parted lips as her shoulders dropped; Lucy lowered her gaze into the grass once more.

As if that was the cue he had been waiting for Natsu shifted ever so slightly where he sat, a hand rising to finger the blood-stained shawl around his head absently.

"I won't hurt you, Lucy."

His voice was very quiet, but the stillness of the morning left the words hanging between them with perfect clarity. The young woman slowly raised her head and eyed him warily.

"I won't hurt anyone unless there's no other way. This time... I didn't have a choice."

Soft brown eyes trailed from his serious face and down the hill, only to snap back quickywhen the red stains in the grass made her stomach lurch.

"W-why not... knock them out?" she whispered hoarsely, almost wishing for tears instead of the hollow daze that crowded her thoughts.

"I considered it" Natsu replied, quite calmly. "But eventually they would wake up and remember what they saw. When the search for you begins they wouldn't have hesitated to talk to spare their lives or earn a few silvers, and we can't afford that."

Lucy swallowed thickly and found her gaze once again moving back to the crumpled shapes on the ground. This time she forced herself to keep looking, even though it made her hands start quivering again. Those men...

"They died... because of me?"

"You will drive yourself crazy if you think like that" Natsu warned grimly and lowered the hand to rest it against a knee. "They're dead because I chose to kill them. If I didn't kill them today, someone else might have done it tomorrow, or they might have lived for fifty more years. Maybe they would have remained quiet about seeing us, or they would have blabbed to every person they met from here to the Teeth. Regardless of which they are dead now because they were out of luck and I was out of options."

"But... if I didn't leave the castle..."

The guilt was heavy, stifling, like a hot blanket of shame wrapped too tightly around her, so tight she could barely breathe. Lucy wasn't looking at the dragon and received no warning when he suddenly moved. All she knew was that one moment they were sitting with more than an arms length of space between them and the next Natsu was right in front of her while scaly, clawed hands closed around her upper arms and held her very still.

Lucy squealed in fright and tried to back away, but she would've had more success toppling the castle walls than she had trying to escape the dragon's grip. Even her lips were pale as she stared up at the man, his gaze so intense where they stared into her eyes that she thought her heart might just have turned into a flock of panicked birds.

"I stole you from that castle, remember?" The words came out almost like a snarl that did nothing to calm her down.

"You didn't leave, I took you away. If anyone is guilty it's me. If you need to blame someone, blame me. If you had asked me to take you away then maybe I'd be more inclined to agree, but I didn't give you a choice. I took you because I wanted to and I'm going to keep you because I want to, even if it means I have to slaughter armies and burn cities to the ground."

Lucy trembled in his grasp, breathless in face of the sudden intensity. Unbidden the old stories flashed through her memory again, all the horrific stories of their greed and power and destructive nature. The hands were burning and painful on her arms, his entire body emanating a heat so intense that she didn't understand why the grass beneath them didn't catch on fire. A flash of pink ghosted over her mouth as the princess moistened her lips, nervously wondering what in all the heavens she had gotten herself into.

"So" the man continued with only the briefest pause, marginally less intense, "don't blame yourself for anything that happens from now on. You are not responsible, you couldn't stop me if you tried and nothing you say will make me bring you back. Just smile and laugh and enjoy your freedom."

Natsu eased up on his grasp just enough that it didn't hurt anymore and leaned back slightly, though didn't let go of her arms.

Lucy took a deep breath and straightened a little, rather overwhelmed by the lecture. The fear that turned her from hot to cold and back again faded somewhat, mostly because of the blatant hole in the mans statement, so gaping that she just couldn't ignore it no matter how ruffled or shaken she was.

"How can I be free if you're holding me captive?" she grumbled, pouting slightly while eying the man from the corner of her eye. The slow grin that stretched his mouth was sly and tense and rather unsettling, though much better than the scowl he had been wearing thus far.

"Easy! It's not like I'm going to lock you up anywhere. If you want to go somewhere or do something then go ahead! I'll be coming with you though and if you try to go back to that place then I'll probably stop you."

His grin widened as she stared up into his face, quite taken aback.

"You'll come with me?"

"Of course! What, did you think I'd just drop you off in a random town and leave you there?"

He looked a bit offended, even more so when Lucy nodded with more honesty than tact.

"Hey hey, have some faith, will ya. Who'd go through all this trouble only to ditch you before the fun even starts."

The dragon shook his head and finally let go of her as he pushed himself back up on his feet, grimacing at the stiffness of his legs. Lucy eyed him incredulously as he stretched back and forth, popping sounds emanating from joints and the spine and followed by sighs of relief.

Was this really the same guy that had killed without mercy only a short while ago? If it weren't for the blood on his skin and clothes and the dead men at the foot of the hill she would never have guessed it. Yet the proof was undeniable and the simple knowledge of what this person was capable of was enough to make the girl shiver with unease. Rubbing her arms gingerly she gazed from Natsu to the nameless rogues, then back again.

"Natsu?" His name was still foreign on her tongue, clumsily formed and hesitantly released. Yet he reacted willingly enough by glancing back over a shoulder, gaze calm again and midly curious.

"Huh?"

"I-I don't... You shouldn't.. well.. what I mean is..." She had to take a deep breath to steady herself, wishing her tongue would be more cooperative. "If... it is at all possible... could you... at least TRY not to.. to kill more people?"

Brushing a strand of flaxen hair behind an ear the girl nibbled anxiously at her lip as the dragon regarded her for some time. There was something in his look that made her nervous, something cold and calluous and fierce that suddenly reminded her that despite his very person-like built this man really wasn't human. Lucy forced herself not to flinch or even move when he turned around and stepped back towards her, kept herself from recoiling again when he held out a hand towards her for the second time. Hesitantly she followed the clawed appendage up until she met his gaze, eyes widening slightly when she noticed the silent challenge that burned within it.

Pale fingers trembled as she slowly raised her own hand and carefully placed it in the dragon's palm. They flinched when cold skin connected with hot, sharp scales but didn't move away when Natsu closed the hand around hers and pulled her up on her feet. Something in his face warmed as he did so, as though an edge she hadn't even noticed before had suddenly softened.

"Yeah, I promise" he said quietly, maintaining eyecontact as well as the hold on her hand. "I don't enjoy taking lives, but if it makes you happy I'll try a bit harder to avoid ending in situations where it's unavoidable. In return though, you have to accept that sometimes there's no other way. If I say it's the only choice..."

"Mmh. I'll listen." But maybe not be happy about it. A small, grateful smile grazed her lips as she nodded. Taking a deep breath Lucy let her fingers slip from the mans hand and let out a long, slow sigh that drained the last of the tension from her shoulders, feeling as though a great weight had lifted from them.

"Good. Now come on, we need to get going before more people start to move about."

Natsu unfurled the wings from his back and reached out for the slender girl. Lucy hesitated however, turning towards the fallen people in the grass below. Somehow it felt wrong to just leave them there, discarded like garbage just because they were at the wrong place at the wrong time. She ought to do something, alert someone, or at least pay some kind of respects...

She had only managed a few steps towards them when Natsu came up from behind and stopped her with a gentle grip on her shoulders.

"There's nothing you can do" he said quietly and turned her around, very careful with the dangerous claws as he pulled the girl into his muscular chest. "Someone will find them soon enough, and when they do we have to be far away. Don't worry Lucy, it will be alright."

She wanted to believe him, so the princess simply nodded quietly and draped her arms around the mans shoulders, holding on tightly as he jumped off and brought them up towards the sky. The arms that held her were strong and steady and incredibly warm despite the cool morning air. Relaxing was almost too easy; with a quiet sigh the girl let her head drop onto a sturdy shoulder and closed her eyes, too tired to even attempt further conversation.

So much had happened at such a quick pace and she knew for a fact that it would take a long time before she had sorted it all out for herself. Many questions still haunted her, too many to count; where were they going, what would happen now, why had Natsu even brought her along and why on earth was he so adamant about not bringing her back even though it would be the wisest choice? She wondered what would happen if anyone caught up to them, what the dragon would do if they kept being pursued, how they would get food and shelter and she really needed some decent clothes and why was it that the dragon never looked like a real dragon and kept using this halfway guise...

No answers ever came to her. Lulled by the rush of wind and the steady beat of leathery wings Lucy drifted off to sleep, trusting her strange new friend to keep her from falling. It was peculiar how easy it was to entrust her life to him, especially after what she'd just whitnessed. But then again the whole situation was quite bizarre, and since she apparently didn't have any other choice the princess just gave up and dozed off, hoping that everything would make more sense when she woke up again. 


	6. Chapter 6

The world was indeed vast and full of wonder. Lucy was given a front row seat to a spectacular landscape as the dragon propelled them along with steady wingbeats, almost as entertained by her constant gasps of delight as the girl was to see her homeland from above.

For the most part the kingdom of Firoe occupied a vast, grassy lowland. Bordered to the east by a tall mountain range called Jagged Tooth Ridge, or more often 'the Teeth' and by the sea in the west, it was a fertile land well suited for agriculture. Farms and villages dotted the landscape and created a patterned canvas on the land, of greens and browns and yellowish hues where the spring crops were beginning to ripen, intersected here and there by glittering rivers and lakes or irregular patches of woodland so carefully maintained that they almost looked fake.

Like everything else within the borders there was order and structure to every field, road and village no matter how small, maintained with such a compulsive obsession that the princess wanted to scream in frustration. It was a relief then to lift her gaze and follow the untamed curves of the hills and mountains to the north and east, where the land rose more and more the closer they got to the Teeth. Gradually the evidence of settlement thinned out until only a rare hut or small stone pen betrayed the presence of human habitation, a result of more barren land that were more suitable for sheep and cattle than crops.

This held true for the southern parts as well, where high temperatures in combination with a vast marshland made the region damp and unpleasant in summer and even damper and unhealthier in winter. Only the western border was well settled and frequently traveled, the wave-battered coast dotted with wealthy merchant cities that thrived on fishing and trade. So important were they to the finance of the realm that the wealthier merchant clans had come together and created a council that even the king himself couldn't go against lightly. Maintaining the support of the coastal cities was vital, because the sea route was by far the easiest way to reach the neighboring countries; Minstral to the north and Boscor to the south - none of which were on very good terms with Firoe.

Moving across all these cities and villages proved to be a nerve wracking task indeed. Natsu by himself had been able to fly both high and fast enough to avoid being seen, but with Lucy as 'baggage', as he called it, the pace had to be lowered considerably. She didn't have his naturally high body temperature either, which made flying through clouds and thin air a torment for the thinly dressed girl - especially when the wind grew stronger and colder.

After spending the better part of a day circling the large towns that dotted the landscape around the capitol, the dragon reluctantly brought them down in a forested area just outside a moderately sized town.

"This isn't working, we need to travel faster and for that you gotta have better clothes. And we both need to eat" he muttered sourly in response to her query of what they were doing. His temper had grown steadily worse as the day passed by with minimal rest and no food, until it reached a point where Lucy hesitated to bring up anything that wasn't purely happy or pleasant.

In this case she had neither wish nor cause for protest and nodded eagerly as she followed the man through the forest, tripping and stumbling along in his wake. Her soft bare feet were cold and sore from walking on rocks, thistles and twigs, but Lucy gritted her teeth and pressed on with a stubborn determination to not complain.

When the dragon offered to go alone and bring back what they needed she just shook her head. There was no way Lucy would pass up this chance to see a normal town with normal people, not even after listening to Natsu's assurances that there was nothing interesting about them whatsoever.

Perhaps they weren't for him. She had never been on her own anywhere however, and while Natsu definitely counted as company he was still unfamiliar enough to enhance her sense of adventure as they followed a narrow pathway in between the first houses, soon strolling casually down cobbled streets while the blonde girl tried to look less wide-eyed and awed and more worldly. Not staring at the people that walked by was harder than it should be, not to mention avoiding to bump into others along the street. The sheer number of them was enough to make her heart pound, and the sheer variety of height, slimness, manner and state of dress and temper was staggering, overwhelming. These were normal, regular people who worked for a living and had families and friends and spent their time laughing and crying while making their own decisions. Lucy wanted nothing more than to be one of them, to be normal, to not be royal and pampered and completely lost. But even as she followed in the wake of the dragon she felt separated from the others. Eyes seemed to follow her as though all of them were staring at her wherever she walked, and it wasn't until Natsu hissed and dragged her into a narrow alleyway that the girl realized that they actually _did_ stare.

"Better start with some clothes" Natsu mumbled as he pulled her down the path onto streets that were less crowded. "Not everyday a girl in a nightgown stroll down the highway like it's no man's business..."

Lucy blushed and chose not to say anything. In all honesty she had forgotten about her scantily dressed state and was only now reminded that there were better ways to avoid drawing attention to herself. She wasn't the only one who could use a change of clothes however, as she pointed out to the dragon when he led the way into a small store filled from wall to wall with second-hand clothing. The bloodstains might not show well on the dark fabric of his shirt but it remained suspiciously town in the back where the large wings now screamed with their absence - not to mention that it had a distinct odor to it that made the young lady wrinkle her nose in dismay.

He grumbled a bit, but by the time they emerged from the shop and left to find a tavern obscure enough to be safe yet not so much to be unhealthy, they were both wearing new garbs.

"It feels so _strange_" Lucy complained as they sat down by a table in the far corner of the Cat's Rest single room, hands tugging at the hem of her new tunic. The rough green cloth only reached to mid thigh and the girl was very aware of how the sturdy leather trousers clung to her legs, hugging her skin in a way she _definitely_ wasn't used to. Somehow the tight fit and knee-high boots made her feel more indecent than she had been in the flimsy gown, aware of her own body's curves like never before - not that she was completely innocent but _still_.

"Are you _sure_ this is okay?"

"Why wouldn't it be?" Natsu grunted, too busy following the waitress that carried the tray with their food to even look at the runaway princess. "This place is probably the only one where women aren't dressing however they want. Just wait until we cross the border, you'll see what I mean."

Lucy grumbled words under breath that wasn't meant to be heard, something about skirts, dresses and how lecherous men should have their eyes clawed out. Natsu cackled wickedly at her discomfort and waited until the waitress had disappeared again before he reached for a big bowl filled with thick stew and a tankard frothing over with some amber drink, already drooling.

"I thought you were going to quit being ladylike" he teased between hungry mouthfuls, the mood improving for every bite. "What's the point of wearing skirts and lace when it's bound to get dirty and wet and torn and..."

"Because it's _pretty_", Lucy sighed, a wistful look on her face as she thought back on the marvelous midnight-blue dress she had found in a corner of the store, far too expensive for most people to buy with it's heavy velvet fabric and delicate creamy lace. "Oh, I know that it needs to be practical now, so no skirts or things that get in the way... but there's nothing wrong with just _admiring_ it, right?"

The man rolled his eyes, clearly not very interested in the subject. His own clothes were just as practical as the old ones had been; dark and unassuming, a plain shirt and the same baggy trousers and sturdy shoes with the only addition being a heavy wool coat that obscured half his face with its high collar and flapped dramatically around the knees when he walked. Lucy smiled behind a hand as she ate, remembering his enthusiasm upon finding the garment. For being disinterested in fashion the guy sure had let himself get dragged along with the mood.

Rather enjoying the feeling of being indoors again after a whole day in the open, the sheltered young woman leaned back in the comfortable chair and let her eyes roam over the room, taking in the people that milled about without letting them know that she was looking. It was a skill she had practiced for many years of dull feasts and discussions, but what she found here was far more interesting than tipsy courtiers and gossiping servants. Cat's Rest was apparently a favorite hangout for workers, because the longer they sat by their table the more big, burly men with worn clothes came in, some greeting the barman and each other like old friends, while others just walked in and slumped down whenever they found spare room. The sun was already setting outside and the small windows offered little light; only the yellowish glow from hearth and torches lit the room for a while, until a quick exchange led one of the waitresses to start lighting candles behind thin porcelain screens.

"Is it always this many people about?" she murmured to her friend as she finished eating, pushing the plates away so that she could rest her arms on the table. Lucy felt drowsy, full and warm and very content with the world now that her stomach had stopped growling. "It's not even a holiday..."

Natsu looked up and blinked a bit before he threw a quick look around the room, a slight frown tugging at his features when he realized just how full the place really was. Thus far he had been too occupied with sating his hunger to pay attention.

"Now that you say it..." The frown deepened as he swept his sharp eyes over the room again. "Know what, it _is_ a bit crowded even for a local favorite. Not sure why, but... might be best if we leave, just in case." He popped the last piece of bread into his mouth and emptied the tankard, then stood up even as a hand fished for coins in a pocket.

Lucy followed suit rather reluctantly, unimpressed by the prospect of spending another night on the ground. She had far more fun eying the burly men as they conversed quietly with one another, scarred hands barely touching their drinks while eyes moved about with slow, bored expressions.

Yet she followed when he made his way towards the door and had almost reached it when a sudden hand on her shoulder made the girl start and turn to see who it belonged to. Staring up into a face filled with hard edges she found herself inspected closely by a pair of dull blue eyes that blinked too often below a mop of straw colored hair. She could hear Natsu swearing behind her but thought nothing of it, not until she tried to turn back and follow him only to find that the heavy, calloused hand still weighed heavily on her shoulder, keeping her in place.

"Excuse me" she tried, giving a small jerk to remind the man of his manner.

"Not so fast, miss" the man replied with deep, gravely voice, his eyes narrowing. "Hey Cap'n, what 'bout this 'un? Looks like she could fit the description."

Description? A sinking sensation in her gut made Lucy jerk away with more strength, unwilling to remain much longer in the crowded pub. It felt as though everyone in the room was looking at her from below heavy lids, calm and calculating... Captain? Then that had to mean that almost all of these men were soldiers, off duty soldiers dressed down from the usual noticeable uniform yet with the same cold, efficient love of duty that her father possessed and so treasured. Not even while off duty would a soldier so close to the capitol ignore a call to search for a missing person, especially not if that person was the daughter of the man that payed their salaries.

"Hey, let _go! Ow!_"

Her best efforts were nowhere near efficient enough to get herself out of the mans grip however. The yellow-haired girl felt a tang of fear and unease shoot through her when she tried and failed to leave and felt frustration bubble up within for being too weak, for finding a simple sturdy grip painful. Just as suddenly as she had been caught, Natsu was there. Grim faced and scowling with a dangerous gleam in his eyes he clasped a hand around the blonde man's fleshy wrist and squeezed until the soldier cursed and was forced to relinquish his grasp. Lucy recoiled and darted in behind the dragon's back, eying the room nervously. More heads had turned now, some big muscular men had stood from their chairs and were closing in on the two suspects.

"Natsu..." she breathed anxiously when it looked like he was tempted to linger and do something worse to the other man than almost breaking his arm, but rather than starting a brawl Natsu took a step back, spun around and quickly shoved her on as he darted for the door.

Once outside he ignored her urges to hurry up, ripped off coat and shirt before throwing them to her to hold. In a heartbeat the dragon transformed and hoisted them both into the air, just as the tavern door burst open and armed men began to spill out into the street, shouting and pointing when they spotted the fleeing pair.

Biting off curses so foul that they singed the air and made Lucy's cheeks grow hot the dragon propelled them upwards faster and faster until they were well beyond reach of crossbows. There he leveled out and sped off towards the north, leaving the peaceful town behind at a pace that Lucy found staggering - Natsu however remained dissatisfied.

"This ain't good, how they hell did they get a description out so fast!?" he panted, breathless from talking and flying while simultaneously making himself heard over the rush of wind.

"Messenger birds" Lucy replied at once, wondering why she hadn't thought of that before. "An urgent message can move from the capitol to every border in a day if the weather is good. Which it has been..." She swallowed and secured her hold around the man's neck a bit better, his bundled up coat and shirt lodged between their bodies in an uncomfortable lump.

"_Great_, and now they know how we travel too! This will be rough Luce, but I swear I'll get you safely over the border!"

"Can't we just hide somewhere for a few days?" she asked, trying her best not to let the fear spill over in her voice.

"Nowhere to hide in this country." Natsu shook his head with a grim expression. "To flat, too many people, not enough mages around..."

"Of course there aren't, magic isn't allowed..."

"But _I_ use it" he pointed out, "and they've got people among the guards who're great at tracking folks with magic power. How do you think they keep mages from going in and out as they please? If this was Minstral it wouldn't be a problem because they have so many mages that a Tracker becomes completely useless, but here? I stand out like a fucking bonfire at night."

Silence hovered around them for a while as Lucy let the reality of their situation sink in. Her father would know by tomorrow that she was on the run, and he'd send out every soldier in the army to find her. They had been seen on their northern course and now Natsu was continuing north, but...

"They'll place guards in every village and house all the way to the northern border, won't they" she sighed, delivering her conclusion. Natsu nodded quietly, suspecting the same.

"So... what do we do? West is no good either, Coastal won't stay quiet if I appear there."

"We turn east" Natsu replied almost immediately, sounding as though he just reached the conclusion. "Give pursuers the shake after a few hours, head east, cross the Teeth and then we're safe. Or should be, only wild lands until you get to Galunar... That place isn't exactly peaceful either."

It seemed a bit too simple a plan to actually work, but Lucy didn't have any better suggestions. She focused on keeping herself as still as possible instead to make it easier for the dragon, who insisted on continuing on through the night.

* * *

><p>Natsu didn't stop to rest until dawn had begun to brighten the sky in the east, but by the time he set them down in a small forest clearing he was exhausted. Only pausing to drink from a clear spring that bubbled up from the ground he promptly stretched out on the ground and was asleep before Lucy could even tell him to put his clothes back on. She sighed and shook her head in mild exasperation, spread the dark shirt and coat over the man like a blanket and then walked off so she wouldn't disturb him.<p>

The world brightened by the minute as she scaled a nearby hill and slumped down on the ground, back leaned against the rough bark of a tree. Come to think of it, this was the first time she had been more or less alone since they left the castle. Lucy rather enjoyed the feeling, a soft smile lingering over her lips as she watched the slow rise of the sun.

"It's so peaceful" she murmured to herself, fingers braiding the tall green grasses absent-minded.

Very calm, and incredibly beautiful. This far to the north the landscape was much rougher than in the lowlands with hills rising and falling like green waves, steadily increasing in height and size the further off they were. She could see the smoke from a few villages rise in the quiet morning air, dotted across the landscape. They were some ways off the main trading routes but there were still a lot of people about. It was a clear reminder that they weren't safe yet... but Lucy didn't want to think of those coiling trails of smoke as a threat. Not when the picture painted by the landscape was so serene, not when they had so much to worry about already. The girl needed a break from all that, even if it was just for a short moment.

Pulling her legs up towards her chest she rested her cheek against a knee, eyes roaming dreamily over the scenery while her thoughts roamed freely. She didn't have to pinch herself to know she wasn't dreaming, and yet reality was far stranger than any daydream she'd ever had. Never had she thought that she would actually be able to escape the castle walls. Her plans had always been half-baked and unrealistic at best, colored by numerous mushy adventure novels and dyed in the rosy light of romance. There had been no dragons in her imagined adventures, no wild chases across the kingdom - and certainly no chafing, constricting trousers. Oh, she couldn't deny that they were warm and practical, but it didn't stop her from feeling exposed. Natsu hadn't even commented on it - which was lucky for him - but the princess was and would probably remain very self-conscious about the curve of her hips and how the brown leather made her thighs look much bigger than they actually were. Why would any woman prefer these over decent skirts?

But well, there were perks to them as well. At least she didn't look much like a princess anymore. Polishing off the hard edges a strict upbringing had left her with would probably take time, but there was something very rebellious and liberating about walking without heavy cloth swishing around the legs or corsets to constrict her breathing. Lucy could definitely get used to it, and had every plan to do so too.

For several hours she lingered on the hilltop, so deep in thought that she didn't even notice Natsu until he slumped down on the ground beside her, yawning widely with coat and shirt dangling over a bare shoulder.

"Feeling better?" Lucy asked and offered the man a smile, carefully averting her eyes from all the naked skin. The man was incredibly well built, but while the sculpted torso and defined muscles could be considered close to a work of art, looking made her feel funny inside, as though she had swallowed a handful of butterflies. It didn't make much sense to be nervous around Natsu - he was _Natsu_ after all, dragon and goofy and sometimes too scary to stand - but she was anyway, to her own chagrin.

"Mmh, but I probably slept too long" he muttered. Raising his hands to the scarf around his head he unfastened the knot and carefully pried the cloth away from the wound on his forehead, grimacing whenever a scab came off.

"How's this look?"

The girl hesitated for a fraction of a moment, then turned and pushed a few strands of hair away from his forehead to get a better look. She examined the cut, feeling a stab of guilt when she saw how deep it was. It could have used a few stitches, but aside from being long and bleeding slightly where the cloth had been sticking to the skin it looked clean and dry - not that she was an expert.

"Doesn't seem to be any infection" she noted and let her fingers drop back into her lap. "Which is odd, considering how it hasn't been cleaned properly."

"Eh, I always heal quickly" Natsu shrugged, busy refolding the scarf before he tied it back over the cut. "Lucky for you - would have been embarrassing to explain how a dead person ended up in your garden." He grinned pointedly at her and made her snort despite the extra surge of guilt.

"Oh, I don't know about that. I could have gotten a medal if word spread that I killed a dragon with my bare hands!" She smiled back, eyes glittering in the warm sunlight. "Princess Lucy Heartfilia, the Dragon Slayer of Firoe! Doesn't sound half bad..."

"Ha, terrifying! Other dragons will cower in their dens at the mention of the girl with the stick, vanquisher of the mighty Salamander!"

"Salamander?" she laughed incredulously. "Is that you?"

"Apparently" he grinned. "Wasn't my idea..."

"Aren't salamanders fire lizards? Then why..."

"Because of _this_!"

Lucy gasped and jerked back so quickly that she toppled onto the ground when the dragon raised a hand that suddenly, for no apparent reason, burst into flame. He laughed at her as she stared open-mouthed at the bright fire, flames bobbing merrily at the slightest movement. The heat was intense, like sitting next to a campfire, but Natsu didn't seem bothered in the slightest.

"_How_ do you do that?!" she exclaimed in a mixture of fear and delight, so mesmerized that she actually reached out to touch the fire herself.

"Hey hey, careful!" the dragon laughed, pulling his arm away. "It's magic, comes with being a dragon."

"Does it hurt?" Shifting onto her knees she followed the movements of his hand, filled with a giddy excitement that spilled over in a wide, glittering smile.

"Not me, but _you_ better keep your fingers to yourself." Natsu grinned and let the fire go out again, laughing again when her face fell in disappointment. "More importantly, we need to get moving." He got to his feet and reached for the girl once she had stood and accepted the unnecessary clothes.

Finding it much easier to simply pull on the oversized coat she tied the shirt around her waist, Lucy tried her hardest not to blush when Natsu laughed at the result, or when he draped bare, muscular arms around her in a secure grip.

"Natsu, are there many dragons around?" She had to distract herself from the sensation of smooth, warm skin beneath her fingers. Frantically the girl kept up the conversation even as they took off, hating how her own body betrayed her with tingles and heightened sense of touch, smell, hearing - everything. Lucy was incredibly grateful for the extra layers of cloth between herself and the wind - and the man, who to her knowledge remained oblivious. _Thank all the stars in heaven._

"Yeah, more than you'd think" he replied as he propelled them forward, towards the east this time. "We got a bit of a bad reputation though so we have to hide - looking and acting like humans is easier than holing up in a cave somewhere."

"Mmh, I don't think I've ever heard a story where dragon's were nice..." It slipped out before Lucy really had thought the sentence through and bit her lip when Natsu glanced down at her, expression unreadable. How did he even do that? So expressive one moment and then blank as a statue... it was _unfair_.

"And you still wanted to see one?"

Again, it was impossible to discern what he was thinking, his voice was so even and neutral that Lucy couldn't figure out if he was hurt or angry or just mildly curious. Nodding quickly she pushed whipping hair away from her eyes, trying to find words to explain. "Stories... aren't always true, right? I suppose I wanted to see for myself if they were right, form my own opinion..."

"Hmm..." She could feel his throat vibrate against her arms, a slight glitter appearing in the dark onyx of his eyes as he faced forward again. "And? What is your opinion now that you've met a dragon?"

She thought she could hear a trace of laughter in his voice, but the part of his face that she could see was quite impassive. Suddenly blushing without really knowing why, Lucy hid her face away in the crook of her own arm, Furious with the way her heart suddenly drummed in the chest. She tried to collect her thoughts enough to actually answer, the words tumbling into the air in a slightly pouty mumble.

"Dunno about all dragons, but the one I met... definitely weird! And scary! ... but very kind..."

Natsu began to laugh and the color of her face turned from a flushed pink to nearly as crimson as the scales of his wings.

"Seems the stories aren't all true then!" he grinned, suddenly cheerful as the beat of the wings quickened. Lucy tightened her grip around his neck, glad that he couldn't see her face as she let her head come to rest against a bare, sturdy shoulder.

"Mmh, it really does."


	7. Chapter 7

It took them nearly a week to reach the eastern border. Between avoiding settled areas and the weather that took a turn for the worse on the third day, Lucy was still amazed by the sheer speed with which they had traveled. They had spent so much time dodging villages and avoiding guards the times when they had no choice but to enter a village to buy food that she was surprised when Natsu declared that the small, winding river they had passed over was the eastern-most bend of the Erran, and that the giant peaks gleaming with snow that towered up before them were the Teeth. The terrain below had gradually grown rougher and wilder for each day, farms and settlements thinning out until they no longer had to take detours to avoid being seen, only to be completely replaced by dense, dark, evergreen forest.

Lucy was elated and terrified at the same time, stunned by the sheer notion that she had actually escaped her father's clutches.

"It's too early to celebrate" Natsu cautioned one afternoon as they sat huddled beneath a big spruce, sheltered from the rain and the strong wind that had forced them down on the ground among the feet of the mountains. The fair-haired girl had been ranting for a long while on how they had to be safe now, honestly believing that the king's power only reached as far as the border.

"But what can he do?" Lucy protested, peeling wet hair from the brown eyes with an impatient look on her face. "Even the king has no authority outside his own borders, even if they know where we are..."

"He can't do anything officially, no. But this is no-mans-land, Lucy, it'd be easy to send a group of trackers without uniforms or insignias. And if you think he won't send word to Minstral and Boscor..."

"... they would very eager to place the kingdom in their debt" she mumbled, deflating as her good mood evaporated. "Not only would it make them look good, but getting their hands on me would serve as a powerful leverage if negotiations..."

Natsu nodded grimly. Sighing she dropped her gaze to the ground and followed the movement of ants among the brown needles, flicking them away from legs and boots whenever they began to crawl on her.

"Where can we go then? Is _any_ place safe?" The dragon shifted but Lucy didn't look up, disappointment like a dull ache in her chest.

"There are more countries in the world than these" the man said softly. " Galunar is our best option right now. Getting there will take time, but once we're past these mountains our pursuers will have a heck of a time tracking us in the wilderness, and once we're there we can go north or south - anywhere really."

"Are you sure there even _are_ any pursuers?" She felt stubborn, unwilling to admit that the probability was high.

"I for one will assume that there are and that they're right on our heels" the dragon shrugged, a tone of impatience in his tone now. "I'd rather be on my guard than wake up one morning and find that we're surrounded!"

The princess stiffened, unused to being addressed in that tone.

"I'm not stupid Natsu, I know we have to be careful!" she said, her own voice sharp and irate as she straightened up to face him. "I just want proof that we really have a reason for all this paranoia..."

"_Proof_!? What proof do you think you'll get, wanted posters and a declaration of intent? If the close shave the other day wasn't bad enough for you..!"

Lucy flinched, recalling all too vividly their hurried escape from a small, dirty village two days ago after a guard had appeared in the inn, even though the villagers had insisted that there were no soldiers stationed in the area. It was still unclear whether they had been noticed, but if they had...

"I just..!" She bit her jaws together and turned her back on Natsu, as angry and frustrated as she was reluctant to admit that he was right. When tears suddenly pooled in her eyes she wiped them away with jerky motions, furious with herself for not finding words to defend her point. "I'm tired of being worried all the time" she finally admitted in an explosive sigh, swallowing hard to rid herself of the lump in her throat.

A heavy silence lowered over the forest, interrupted only by the rush of rain and wind and the creak of swaying trees. Every now and then a cascade of droplets shuddered down through the branches, dampening the ground and the travelers that sheltered below. It was still dryer than standing in the open, but being cold and wet certainly didn't improve their mood.

"I don't know what you were expecting" Natsu said quietly, finally moving again where he sat, "but it will get better, truly. Right now it's dangerous and scary, we're chased and don't have much of a plan..."

She could hear him card restless fingers through the messy hair, a frustrated sigh soon following.

"Will he ever stop looking?" It was strange. For so many years she had wished for nothing more than her father's attention, and now that she _had it_ Lucy couldn't wait for him to go back to being disinterested.

"Probably not." The dragon always was more honest than tactful. "Any decent father wouldn't, and a king... I dunno, you tell me."

"He's always been more king than father" the girl muttered. "Even when mother was still alive... No, he won't give up. There's too much at stake for him, he has to keep up the facade and let the people know that no one can steal from the king and get away with it. There's the matter of succession too, since I'm the only child."

Rubbing her arms to stave off the cold the girl grimaced at the numerous memories she had of suitors parading before herself and the king, fighting amongst themselves for the right to wear the crown.

Twigs snapped and creaked as the man behind her moved, inching closer until she felt his warmth against her back. Lucy stiffened when arms suddenly slipped around her and pulled her backwards, his head heavy as Natsu leaned his chin against her hair. She forgot to breathe, sitting motionless while the pulse increased in pace, faster and faster and faster.

"You don't have to bother with things like that anymore" the dragon mumbled as he leaned back against the tree, wings cushioning and shielding from the multitude of twigs that lined the trunk. "I don't see any princesses anywhere, just a wet girl in a forest on the run from the kingdom."

A small smile crept across her lips, trembling and faint but there none the less. He was warm, as hot as a campfire and much gentler but ants must have crawled inside her shirt because wherever he was touching the skin tingled, to the point where she wanted to squirm. Oh he was so kind and thoughtful but did the dragon have _any idea_ what he was doing to her, how much she _hated_ to admit it?

"Good thing she has a friend who knows how the world works" she murmured, hesitantly allowing herself to relax into the warmth of his embrace. Color was creeping along her cheeks but the girl chose to ignore it - she really was grateful for the comforting gesture and didn't want to make a fuss.

"Ain't it!? For being a smart chick she sure get dumb ideas, not to mention being so weird that.. Ow!"

"I'm not weird!" she huffed, cheeks puffed indignantly as she let go of the arm she had just pinched, a bit harder than necessary. "Especially not compared to the guy with pink hair..."

"Takes one to know one! And it ain't pink, more like salmon" he protested, a grin on his face now. Strictly speaking it wasn't that either, more an odd hue of brownish red... but the hair definitely looked pink when the sun shone on it, and Lucy loved making fun of it.

"Ha, so you admit that you're weird!" The young woman let out a triumphant laugh that quickly turned into a high-pitched squeal when Natsu retaliated by digging his fingers into her sides.

The banter went back and forth until Lucy gave up and sank into an exasperated but decidedly more comfortable silence. The body behind her back still shook with silent laughter, though Natsu seemed far too content with winning to press his luck and followed her example.

It was oddly peaceful to just sit there and listen to the rain. So far they hadn't had many chances to simply rest and talk, too busy running or flying or getting much needed rest to talk about anything that wasn't urgent. Come to think of it, this was probably the first time since their first encounter in the palace garden where they weren't in a hurry. While they still had to move on it was impossible as long as the wind kept bending the trees like strands of grass and if the rumble of thunder in the distance was any indicator, it was only going to get worse during the night. Which meant that they had a lot of time to kill, and _oh_, so many subjects to choose from.

"Natsu..." she nudged curiously after a while. "Do you have family?" It was only one of many questions that had weighed on her over the past week, though possibly one of the more important ones.

"'Course" he replied, sounding lazy and half asleep. "Igneel, my dad..."

"Won't he be worried if you don't go home?" Not only was she causing trouble for everyone in Firoe, but for the dragon as well. Wasn't she keeping him from returning to his kin?

"Nah, I doubt it. He usually goes off for months without telling me why or where, this is just returning the favor." He smirked slightly. "I've a feeling he'll laugh pretty hard when he find out about all this - you'll like him for sure."

The thought of being introduced to a parent, dragon or not, had the girl blushing something fierce. Of course it wouldn't be in the sense that her flexible mind appeared to assume, but none the less... Masking her flustered state with a slight laugh she tried to imagine what Igneel would be like, but the only thing that appeared in her mind was a bigger version of Natsu.

"What about.." She had been about to ask for his mother, but changed her mind at the last second. Her own mother had died years ago but it was still painful to talk about her, and if Natsu didn't bring his own up... maybe the same applied for him. "Where are you from, anyway?"

"Isval, north-west of Galunar." Lucy moved her head so she could look up at him, and found Natsu smiling back. "It's a bit of a detour, going through Minstral would have been much quicker, but we're still heading in the right direction."

"That's good" she breathed, unable to hide her relief. "I'd feel bad if I was dragging you from home and friends..."

"This again?" He rolled his eyes. "Who's dragging who, huh? I've been calling the shots from the beginning..."

"But if it wasn't for..."

A scaly hand over her mouth cut off her protest mid-sentence, making her eyes shoot daggers at the cackling dragon.

"Oh, just shut up, I'm not having this boring discussion again!"

Lucy had to snort at that. Discussion? That had not been a discussion because she hadn't gotten a word in even when he had stopped snarling.

"Fine" she muttered reluctantly after pulling his hand away from her lips, "I get it." She thought for a moment, then glanced up at him through her lashes. "So are we're going to Isval?" The thought made her tingle with excitement. It wasn't a country she had ever heard of - even Galunar had been on the maps she had studied and memorized as a child, since it, while remote, still bordered on Firoe.

"Eventually yeah, sure. After that... who knows? Once the hunt for you calm down we can go wherever you want."

"Really?" Lucy glanced up him. "Anywhere?"

"Anywhere, everywhere."

A bright smile lit up her face just as a lighting flashed across the sky accompanied by a sound like tearing fabric. They both flinched when the sudden crash of thunder made the very ground quake beneath them, the rain intensifying as the wind picked up. The spruce no longer offered much shelter as the swaying tree let down cascade after wet cascade of cold water; Lucy moistened her lips nervously as she looked up, then around, and realized that their tree wasn't the only one that was groaning under the pressure of the wind.

"Natsu, I think we have to move" she said anxiously, a pale hand clutching at the fabric of his sleeve. "If this gets any worse..."

He frowned as he looked around, humming in agreement yet still reluctant. To move about in the open in this weather would be dangerous to say the least. He met the worried gaze of the girl, a muscle working as he clenched his jaw tightly.

"You stay here, I'll go look for a place..."

"No way! Who knows how long that will take, then going back here to get me... No, I'm coming with you."

The logic was impeccable but was only half the reason why she so adamantly refused. Lucy wasn't going to admit it, but she was terrified of being left alone right now. She had always hated thunder and darkness, and with these thick clouds the late afternoon could as well be midnight, the only light came from the lightning that flashed across the sky.

"Fine, fine! But stick close!"

Wasting no time arguing he hoisted them up and ducked out from the shelter with Lucy close on his heels. Gasping she felt the wind nearly lift her off her feet, the chill of the rain a shock against her skin that had been spoiled from the close proximity to the dragon. Within moments she was soaked through and stumbled along half blind, barely able to make out the back of her friend for the rain and the gloom between the trees.

Aside from the foul weather and the accursed thunder that made her jump and flinch every other step, Lucy felt a mad excitement take over as she walked. _Finally_ she was able to use her own two feet to get somewhere, and while the terrain was steep and difficult to navigate with rocks, fallen logs and treacherous roots it felt amazingly good to endure aching legs and shortness of breath. So far Natsu had been doing all the work - flying them away from danger, hunting and cooking whenever they had been stranded without a village nearby, fighting. She was grateful for all of it, of course she was, but the princess hadn't wanted to leave the castle to continue on as a pampered lady.

This time she would pull her own weight. Whenever Natsu turned around to check on her she gave him a wide smile, bright and reassuring, even when her legs began to feel numb and she started to fall behind. Determined to keep up the blonde didn't say anything when his pace increased so much that she almost lost sight of him in the storm, nor did she let out the wince of pain when she stumbled and twisted an ankle with a wrong step. Stubbornly she pressed on with moss and mud splattering high upon her legs, quenching the pangs of fear when the dragon was swallowed up by the darkness and moments went by before she caught sight of movement again.

_Just being silly_, she scolded herself. _Of course_ he wouldn't leave her behind. Hadn't Natsu said so several times already? 'What was the point of doing all this just to leave before the fun started'...

"You alright?"

The young woman nearly bumped into the pink-haired dragon before she realized he had stopped to wait for her. When had he turned around again? She couldn't remember, hadn't seen it happen. Drenched from head to tow Lucy managed a weak smile and nodded, too out of breath to talk.

"Just a bit further, I saw something up ahead. Might be a cave."

Warm, calloused fingers closed around her wrist and pulled her along up the slope, then off to the left towards a steep cliff that shot from the bedrock like a giant knee. Lucy couldn't understand how he was able to see anything at all in this weather, she could barely make out her own hands. He clearly knew what he was doing though because he led them straight towards a dark crack in the cliff that looked just wide and deep enough to let them through. Struggling to catch her breath Lucy waited outside while Natsu squeezed through, fire licking over his hands as he examined the cave.

"It's bigger than it looks!" she heard him shout, voice warped and muffled by the echo and howling wind. "Come on, it'll have to do."

Too tired to do anything but obey the girl climbed after him, squeezing herself through the narrow entrance only to find the cold stone walls widening around her. By no means large, the crack still offered plenty of space along the ground and narrowed into a point above their heads. It continued further into the mountainside but a jumble of debris blocked any access to it, for which she was very glad. Thoughts of bears and bats and dangerous monsters paraded through her mind and with a shudder she tore the gaze away from the deep darkness, focusing instead on the flickering light of Natsu's flames.

"Better than the tree" she admitted and slumped down on the ground, pushing away loose rocks with hands and feet until nothing was digging into her skin - at least not painfully so.

"Definitely. Good thing you came along, not sure I'd find the way back..." Grinning under her horrified stare he shook his head violently, ruffling through the hair to get rid of the water that kept dripping into the eyes.

"You'd better have" she muttered, grimacing at the sheer amount of water that splattered to the ground as she began squeezing her hair and shirt and dragged off the sopping boots. Several envious glares were shot towards the fire mage who already seemed perfectly dry, his clothes steaming slightly as vapor rose from the cloth. If only she could alter her temperature too, she wouldn't have to shiver from cold as gusts of wind found their way in through the opening and cooled her wet clothes. Lucy sneezed, immediately beginning to worry about catching colds as she rubbed her arms furiously in hopes that the friction might dry her shirt as well as warm her up. It wouldn't surprise her at all, with all the bad luck she was having lately.

"What, want me to dry you off?" Natsu offered with a grin and held out his burning hand. He looked a bit too enthusiastic and the girl eyed him warily for a few moments before shaking her head. She rather preferred her clothes whole and unburned.

"Thanks, but I'm fine. A campfire would be nice though, you think there's room?" The space seemed large enough, but...

"Probably. Hang on, I'll get some wood."

Ducking out into the storm again he disappeared and took the fire with him, leaving Lucy alone in the dark. It probably hadn't been intentional, but she still cursed the dragon up and down the seven seas as time dragged by, her imagination running so wild that when he returned with arms full with branches she was reduced to a quivering mess huddled in a corner of the cave.

"Er.. sorry" he said feebly when she glared at him, clearly unsettled by the angry tears in her eyes. "Didn't know you were... ehm.. I'll light that fire, shall I?"

If she hadn't been so angry the hurried way in which he broke off branches and stacked the wood would probably have made him laugh. It was satisfying however, and when the darkness had been chased away by the bright flames of a small but warming fire Lucy relented and forgave him with a sigh of relief.

"How long will it take to reach Galunar?" she asked as she held her hands out towards the flames, savoring the warmth that made her skin prickle and sting. Natsu had stretched out on the ground beside her, head propped up on one hand while the other played with the fire - he looked more bored than tired.

"Dunno. A week, ten days maybe, depends on the weather. I won't even _try_ to cross the mountains if it's like this." He gave the storm outside a disgusted look.

"Because of the wind?"

"Nah, too hard to see. The passes are narrow, I might fly us into a rock..."

"Ah, yes, better avoid _that_." Laughing quietly the girl shifted so that the fire could dry the back of her shirt as well and trailed her eyes absently along the cavern walls, fascinated by the dance of light and shadow across the rough surface. "Have you been to Galunar before?"

"Mmh, a few times.

"What's it like there?"

"Rowdy." Lucy glanced at the dragon with a raised brow and saw a slight frown on his face. "It's not a big country and the government isn't very interested in what the people do as long as they pay taxes, so it's become a hangout for fugitives and criminals. There are plenty of shady people about, so we'll have to be careful in more ways than one."

She hummed thoughtfully and twirled a lock of hair around a finger. It didn't sound very reassuring, to say the least, and for people in their position it was downright dangerous.

"It sounds like the perfect place to set up an ambush" she murmured quietly, mostly to herself. "If they know we are going east instead of north... But the relation between the nations isn't good, not at all, and there's no way trackers would get ahead of us. Right?"

Natsu blinked and nodded quickly as she snapped her eyes in his direction.

"Then... Natsu, I just don't see how anyone is going to catch up. Even if they ride their horses to death..."

He considered this for several minutes, then sighed and shook his head. "Maybe I really am paranoid. Just.. let's keep the pace up until we're well over the mountains, at the very least..."

He looked stubborn, but Lucy knew that the grueling pace was taking its toll on him as well. They never had enough to eat, never got enough rest and the constant vigilance had left his face looking more gaunt and tense than when she first met him.

"It would be nice to be able to stop and rest before you're exhausted" she tempted. "Take the time to find proper food, sleep through an entire night..."

The man groaned in longing and awarded her with a baleful glare. "Oh _go on_, keep reminding me of everything I _can't_ do yet!"

_Yet, eh?_ Her smile rivaled the sunrise in brightness and Natsu sighed in defeat, flopping over to his back - only to grimace as a rock dug into his spine. It clattered off along the ground as he dug it out and threw it aside, grumbling and sulky.

"Alright, fine! But not until we're over the Teeth!"

"Okay! I'm good with that!"

_Of course_ it was okay, she had _won_. Humming happily Lucy placed another branch on the fire and sighed delightedly as the warmth increased, sparks crackling and rising towards the roof of the cave like tiny fireworks. Moderately dry and warmer than she had been, with company and light with the rumble of the storm outside... really, the only thing Lucy could ask for more would have been food to satisfy the ache in her belly. But since she wasn't the only one who was hungry, even that was bearable. They could growl together.


	8. Chapter 8

The weather remained bad the following morning, but Natsu was impatient to move on even if it meant they had to walk. Cold rain and a persistent wind made the journey into the mountains rather unpleasant and Lucy didn't hold back on voicing her complaints about wet feet, chafing boots and cold hands. He was forced to listen to endless harangues on how stupid it was to hike when staying an extra day in the warm, dry cave wouldn't cost them anything because no one else would be stupid enough to move about in this weather, and just gritted his teeth against the growing impatience. Better listen to Lucy's nagging voice than waste time - he repeated it so often in response to her whining that it grew into a mantra he fell back on whenever his temper threatened to flare up.

Truth was, Lucy had almost as much fun tormenting her friend as she had hiking up and down mountainsides. Wet feet and aching limbs were nothing in face of this grand adventure, but she made sure to keep her wide-eyed amazement and gasps of wonder to herself as the landscape grew steadily wilder and more dramatic for each mile they covered. The Teeth were tall and sharp and loomed over their heads with a bombastic elegance, exuding a sense of the same serene danger one might find in the lumbering steps of a bear or perhaps in the sleepy eye of a lion. Whenever the girl remembered to look up and take in the blue-green slopes and snow-capped peaks before them it was as though all her aches and worries simply melted away along with any bad temper.

But however much she wished it, no amount of scenic views would cure the cold she dragged onto herself on the second day in the rain. It began with an unassuming itch at the back of her throat and a few coughs that grew more persistent until she couldn't take more than a few steps without hacking and wheezing. Lucy refused to complain about _that_ particular plight however and pressed on even when Natsu offered to stop and rest, placing one foot before the other with bull-headed stubbornness. The dragon watched her struggle over the course of a day, but when she still insisted on continuing on the morning of the third day despite a high fever and rattling coughs that shook her entire frame, he finally set his foot down.

"I'm in a hurry to cross the mountains, not to see you kill yourself" he muttered as he packed the sniffling girl into a bundle with his coat, the fire outside their makeshift shelter stoked until it could have passed for a bonfire and spread much needed warmth throughout the entire campsite.

"Why are you so stubborn? You've been complaining about everything else without holding back, I don't get this sudden bashfulness."

He looked a bit annoyed as he sat back beside her, arms folded across the chest. Lucy sniffled weakly and wished that her head could stop aching - heck, every joint in her body was aching, but it paled to nothing compared to the midget with the sledge-hammer that had invaded her brain.

"I don't want to hold you back" she mumbled, carefully avoiding to look at the man. Rain was still falling outside but it had slowed into a light drizzle that was more cold than wet and draped the forested slopes in a misty haze. "Don't want to be a burden..."

"_Huh!?_" The dragon looked positively incredulous as he stared. "That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard."

"Then, I'm sorry for being stupid..!" Alas, raising her voice was _not_ a good idea. Her flaming protest was cut short as deep, wet coughs cut like searing blades through her throat and lungs, leaving her breathless and panting once they receded.

"Hey, you okay?" He looked a bit worried, but Lucy didn't deign answer. Did she _look_ alright? Who was the stupid one now?

The rose-haired man sighed and scratched his chin awkwardly, gaze trailing around the slanted roof of branch and leaf that sheltered them from the rain.

"You're not a burden" he muttered, almost too quiet for Lucy to hear. "Even if you were, it's not one I'd mind carrying."

It was probably both kind and sweet of him to say so, but it didn't please the young woman in the slightest. "I don't _want_ that" she retorted, wishing her clogged nose didn't make her sound so pathetic. "I want to be able to do things_ on my own!_"

The dragon raised a silent brow. "You already are" he said, sounding as though he was making some kind of point. "What's wrong with accepting help when things get rough?"

"I've been getting nothing _but_ help all my life" she reminded with a sulky pout. "Help getting dressed, help choosing friends, help avoiding anything even remotely fun. What's wrong with wanting to walk _beside_ my friend instead of stumbling along behind or being carried?"

To her great astonishment Natsu began to laugh. She gave him a very unladylike glare, not seeing the humor in anything at the moment. He must have realized because with some effort he calmed himself and donned a serious face, immediately ruined by the lips that kept wanting to twist into a grin.

"Aren't you expecting a bit much from yourself?

"Huh!?" It was her turn to stare now, as Natsu gave up and let a wide, toothy smile spread across the face.

"This spoiled princess wants to keep pace with the dragon? Hah! It's a _hundred years_ too early!"

Anger and hurt deepened the color in her already flushed face, fever making her more sensitive than usual. She could hear the playful teasing in his voice, saw the glitter within the dark eyes, but the remark still hurt. She opened her mouth to snap back, but before she had time to speak he shook his head and hushed her with a soothing gesture.

"Don't be so impatient" the dragon man continued, still smiling. "I get what you're saying, but it's only been a week. A _single week_, Lucy! Of course you're not strong or fast and I'm not expecting you to be either. That's not why I brought you along."

"Then why _did_ you?" Her tired, bleary gaze was a challenge, the hoarse voice an ocean of insecurity. Natsu blinked sheepishly and fingered the tassels of the scarf-turned-headband, opening his mouth to speak... only to change his mind and think harder on it when he realized how much she needed the answer to be honest.

"Because you interest me" he eventually said slowly, dropping his gaze onto the fair-haired girl.

"... that's all?" Lucy felt faint, disappointment like a stale taste on her tongue.

"Isn't it enough?" He raised a brow, lips twisting into a lopsided grin. "You're a nice, interesting person and I have fun when you're around. I want to talk and laugh and play more games with you and since _I_ couldn't stay in the castle and _you_ wanted to leave, I brought you with me."

In her chest the heart pounded hard and fast, but as his words slowly reached her feverish mind, the ache in the chest gradually faded until only a slight weight of hesitation lingered.

"Then what was all that about stealing and not letting me go back?"

Had she read too much into it? Was that growling declaration of ownership really nothing more than a result of a childishly egocentric desire to possess a favorite toy? Lucy wasn't even sure what she had expected, but for the reason to be so simplistic...  
>But even as her lips began to pull back in a smile, something in the eyes of the dragon changed that made her tense and hold her breath. His grin disappeared in favor of a very serious expression that stayed on as he leaned in closer, a red-scaled, clawed hand landing softly on the ground right next to her face.<p>

"_Exactly_ what it sounded like."

Her eyes widened as they stared up into Natsu's face, so grave and intense and... _greedy_. Heartbeats raced in her chest, his face was so close that she could feel his breath against her cheek.

"I want you around, so I will keep you around. If ridiculous laws and stupid old men prevent me from being where you are, then I will have to keep you where I am."

The ache intensified again, her chest constricting painfully.

"...and what about my will?"

Speaking was so hard, the words were only a soft whisper breathed through lips that barely moved. The dragon blinked slowly, onyx eyes regarding her thoughtfully at first, then narrowed in sudden worry.

"You don't want to come with me?"

Somehow she managed to move her head from side to side in denial. "I want to" she clarified quietly when she noticed mounting dread, clearly stemming from a misunderstanding. "It's just that you never asked..."

Blinking Natsu leaned back, expressions changing so rapidly from fear to relief to confusion that she almost began to laugh.

"I _did_ ask!" he protested, suddenly indignant. "I asked if you.."

"..wanted to _leave the castle_" Lucy interrupted, regaining control over herself now that he wasn't so close anymore. "That's it."

"Really? I didn't?"

He struggled so hard to remember that it almost looked painful and the girl had to fight back laughter once again. How could a man go from scary to almost cute in such a short amount of time? Eyes glittering with barely retained mirth she watched her friend as he thought, flinching slightly when he gave up and almost fell back over her again with a hand on either side of her bundled up frame, a bright smile almost splitting the face in two.

"Then, Lucy do you want to come with me? It'll be dangerous and scary, but if you still want to go then I'll set you free."

Holding back was impossible this time. He was such an idiot, such a happy-go-lucky fool of a weirdo and when he smiled like that it was impossible not to smile back. Like a ruptured dam her laughter burst forth, clear and bubbly and utterly unrestrained - at least until a quick intake of air set off another coughing fit and she was left in a sweaty, trembling pile on the ground. The dragon frowned and looked worried again, but Lucy still smiled widely as she sucked precious air into her lungs, then nodded vigorously.

"Yeah, I'll come. Thank you, Natsu."

"Hey, why are you laughing?"

"No reason..."

"You're weird."

"_You're_ one to talk."

They stayed in camp that day. Lucy was sleeping most of the time while Natsu kept the fire going. Few words were exchanged between them but the silence was comfortable, more so than it had ever been before.

* * *

><p>The next morning she was still feverish, but the weather had cleared enough that the dragon decided he didn't want to waste time walking anymore. Adding his own shirt and coat to her clothes before they left, Lucy felt either too hot or too cold as the illness wreaked havoc with her body. The cold wind and the steady heat from the dragon's skin didn't help the matter much either, but at least she was spared the strain of walking.<p>

The dragon's brow lowered steadily as her condition worsened, worry glowing in his eyes whenever their gazes met. The woman wished there was something she could do to reassure him, but any words would come out false if they came out at all - so she only smiled weakly before letting her head sink back onto his shoulder, relying on Natsu to hold her steady whenever coughs tore through her lungs.

They really _ought_ to stop and find someplace to rest, they both knew that. But the pass that lead to the other side of the ridge was so close now, the sky finally clear enough to let them pass through. Turning back and waiting for another chance might mean they had to stave off pursuers, and they didn't have time for that. So Natsu gritted his teeth and kept going, flying as fast as he could as the air grew thinner, the peaks closer. Lucy could feel the rapid beat of his pulse against her cheek, knew from the tight grip of his arms that he was pushing himself to the limit. If she had been stronger she might have objected, insisted that they land and got some rest... Her mind was only half there even when she was awake however, high fever turning her to ash from the inside out. So she watched and kept smiling whenever Natsu looked her way, unable to grasp why it made him so miserable.

When the top of the pass came nearer, Lucy forced her thoughts to clear just enough to actually see the landscape around them. High walls of glistening ever-white snow stretched out on either side as far as the eye could see. Below their combined shadow flitted hastily over rock and boulder, over ice and glittering snow and before her was a small sliver or clear blue sky that grew larger the higher up they came. She held her breath as Natsu beat his wings once, twice, three times...

...and suddenly the world lay before their feet.

Natsu glanced down at the girl when he felt her stir, and following an impulse he went down at the highest point of the pass, taking a short break while offering a chance for her to look. And look she did, feet on the ground but mostly held up by the dragon's strong arms; it was a good thing he didn't let go, because between the illness and the awe she felt, Lucy likely would have collapsed on the spot.

It was as though she stood on top of the very world itself. Before her eyes the ground dropped into a steep fall that would have taken days of treacherous climbing to traverse on foot, down and down until ice became rock and rock faded into multicolored lichens, grass and then finally forest, the trees growing taller and stronger as the ground gradually leveled out. More mountains cowered at the base of the gigantic ridge, but from here they looked little more than hills, rolling green waves that rose and fell and rose again until the landscape flattened in a blanket of untouched woodlands, intersected here and there by clear blue rivers and glistening lakes. On and on it stretched until, just on the horizon where earth and sky began to mingle and clouds lingered in a misty haze, she thought she could see the forest fade into distant grasslands.

The girl could have kept watching the view forever, but didn't protest when Natsu renewed his firm grip on her and pushed off into the sky, the pressure from his feet setting off a small avalanche that followed them down the mountainside. Lucy laughed as she watched the snow tumble and roll and drag along more snow, until all the mountainside was alive beneath them.

"The world is beautiful" Lucy mumbled with a hazy smile as she hugged herself closer to her friend, not quite remembering when he had stopped feeling too hot and simply become comfortably warm.

"Yeah, and there's plenty more to see" he muttered back, "so hang in there, Lucy. I'll find us a place to rest, and some food. Wouldn't be too bad with some fried fish now, what do you say!"

She smiled and hummed, lips forming words that came out as little more than a blur. Natsu's shoulder was warm and comfortable, and she was so very tired.

"Lucy? Hey, don't fall asleep now! _Lucy_!"

She wanted to stay awake, but it just wasn't possible. The eyelids were so heavy and the world kept spinning, making her dizzy. Lucy closed her eyes promising herself that it was just a little, only for a short while...

* * *

><p>The next time she opened her eyes it was dark. Not the stifling, perfect darkness of a room or a deep cave, but rather the dark of hiding your head beneath a blanket on a cloudy night. The air around her was warm, a dry and comfortable heat seeping into her from above and especially from the soft cushion below, so reminiscent of her feathered mattress at home that she sighed in quiet delight.<p>

It would have been so pleasant if she hadn't been so cold. It felt as though she had been doused in icy waters until her entire body quivered, trembling so violently that it was almost impossible to lift her hand and move away the hairs that annoyed her eyes. Touching her own skin came as a shock; against the intense cold of her fingers the cheeks felt burning, skin clammy and damp.

Ah, right. She was still sick. Then, the soft thing she was lying on... Lucy pulled weakly at the cloth that covered her face and pushed it down, lungs greedily devouring the cool night air as it embraced her burning skin. Expecting to see stars gleam against deep velvet blue, her eyes met only the rough weave of branches and twigs that made up the roof of a new shelter, deceptively similar to others she had slept under recently. If she turned her head she knew she would find the red glow of dying embers in the fire pit, and if she raised her head just a little...

Yes, it was Natsu. He lay outstretched on the ground, one arm beneath the head and the other draped loosely across the small of her back to make sure she wouldn't fall off. Some part of her squealed quietly at the realization that she was lying squarely on top of him, head against a _very_ shirtless chest - but she was too hazy to remember why it was a big deal, too occupied with the thirst that dried her throat and made her tongue stick to the roof of her mouth.

The rosy-haired man cracked open an eye and raised his head a bit when she stirred, a relieved expression spreading along with the soft smile when she looked back.

"Hey, welcome back. How are you... feeling?" A wet, painful cough replied before Lucy could, making the dragon wince sympathetically as he sat up, warm hands rubbing her back as she convulsed.

"Thirsty" she said hoarsely when she was able to speak, breaths shallow and strained as she leaned against him for support.

"Mmh, no wonder. But I think.. yeah, the fever has gone down a bit." His hand felt big and rough against her forehead but the touch was very careful, almost tender as he tested her temperature. Reaching for a bulging water skin on the ground he helped her drink her fill before throwing a thick log and a handful of tinder onto the fire, making small flames poke out of the ashes, lapping at the fuel like hungry red cat tongues.

"How long was I sleeping?" Speaking was easier now but her tongue still didn't want to obey like it usually did. It seemed to be twice its regular size and slightly crooked, making the words come out slurred and unclear.

"Half a day, just about." Natsu settled in with his back against one side of the shelter, arms still maintaining their grasp on her. The girl didn't complain, it was much nicer than sitting by herself. He was always warm, and his shoulders were at just the perfect height to lean her head against. "You were more _unconscious_ than sleeping though. I've never seen a fever so high before."

"I'm sorry for making you worry..."

"As long as you get better." He didn't deny having worried, and it made the girl wonder just _how_ bad it had been. She coughed again and felt relief when something loosened enough in her chest that breathing became a bit easier. The taste of phlegm in her mouth was nasty however and she quickly reached for the water again.

"You hungry?" Natsu asked after a while, dark eyes following her movements to make sure she wasn't overdoing anything.

"There's food?" She didn't feel like eating but the mere mention made her stomach clench, reminding her of how empty it was.

"Yeah, I promised you fish, didn't I?" He sat up just enough to enable himself to reach for a small package by the fire, revealed to be large leaves wrapped around a beautifully grilled trout.

It was probably delicious, but Lucy couldn't feel the taste of the pinkish meat when she put it in her mouth. Her fingers still reached for more, urged on by gratitude towards her friend as much as hunger - yet she couldn't bring herself to eat much. When she finally shook her head and pushed it away there was more than half of it left.

She could feel the dragon's worried gaze on her as she sank back against him and forced herself to smile. "Later" she murmured, eyes already half closed and thoughts scattering like sparrows before a prowling cat. "So tired..."

"Just sleep. We're not going anywhere until you're well again."

Sighing gratefully the girl nodded and twisted in his arms until she was comfortable again. Falling asleep was as easy as closing her eyes, as comfortable and soothing as the rhythm of a dragon's heartbeat against her cheek. It didn't matter that they were faster than they should be, making funny double takes whenever she moved.

* * *

><p>It took nearly four days for the worst of the cold to pass. It might have disappeared sooner if she'd been in a warm house and a comfortable bed, but she was nothing if not cared for. Natsu was so careful and attentive to her needs that it was almost frightening, his normally so careless blundering completely gone. As her thoughts became more coherent Lucy was amused by how reluctant he was to let go of her whenever he had to do something that required both hands. Did he think she would break or get worse by lying on the ground instead of being propped against his chest? The better she got the more annoying it became too, especially when her shyness caught up with the situation and made her blush under his touch until he insisted she had become feverish again.<p>

Natsu wasn't stupid however, no matter how much he loved to act like it. It didn't take him long to realize the real cause behind it, and it amused him to no end.

"Shouldn't you be used to it by now?" he teased over the meal on the evening on the fourth day, eyes glittering mischievously at Lucy over his food. "After all the flying and sleeping and drying and keeping warm..."

There was no stopping the rosy color from spreading over her cheeks and she kept her eyes firmly on her own fish when he began to laugh, much too enthused by her reaction.

"I really think I'm the normal one here" she muttered between bites, finally able to fully appreciate the mild, mouth-watering flavor of the trout, seasoned with herbs that left a pleasantly bitter tang on the tongue. "People aren't supposed to touch so easily..."

"Who told you that, those stuck-up pricks in the castle?"

She nodded.

"Well, there you have it. This ain't a castle, no need to follow their rules. Just do what you want to do!"

Oh, if only it was that _easy_. It just didn't matter how many times she told herself that she really was used to being dragged around, lifted, carried, pulled in or pushed away; whenever she felt a muscular arm drop down around her shoulders the heat immediately rose to her cheeks, until she barely reacted to it anymore. Lucy didn't dislike being treated so familiarly, _on the contrary_. It was heartening and comfortable and she could really see herself getting used to it. But that in itself was the problem - should she really allow herself to become so familiar with a man she knew so little about? Not only a man, a _dragon_ to boot! That Natsu was a friend she had learned to trust helped a bit, but only somewhat. It definitely didn't keep her from being shy, nor from pondering the flutter in her stomach that appeared from time to time, seemingly without cause and definitely unwanted.

She was grateful when they picked up their travel again, the pace much more languid and pleasant than before now that they felt safer. The Teeth rose behind them like a giant wall, a promise of safety that Lucy welcomed with far more trust than Natsu did. He remained wary as they went on, but agreed quite easily to stop and rest whenever something caught the eye of the adventurous princess, be it a clearing below, a peculiar tree along the way as they hiked through lush forests or startled deer that stood like frozen statues for several heartbeats before it took off in high leaps between the trees.

With a dragon by her side it was easy to be brave, even reckless at times. When they woke at night to the howl of wolves the princess shuddered in delight and listened with gleaming eyes rather than fear the skulking shadows, and it was quite easy to scale tall trees or wade through knee-deep waters without seeing the bottom, knowing that he would _definitely_ save her if something went wrong. Natsu did prevent her from overexerting herself again, but it was just as well since Lucy still coughed whenever she got winded. And really, pushing herself over her limits to prove her strength and usefulness to someone who _didn't care_ about that was quite stupid.

She did insist on being taught how to set the nifty little traps he used to catch rabbits and small birds with, however, and struggled for several days with flint and kindling until she managed to make her own fires. Natsu started rolling his eyes whenever she came over with a determined look and glittering smiles, but his protests were weak and easy to push past, almost as fake as his lack of enthusiasm whenever she finally got the hang of something.


	9. Chapter 9

They didn't drag their feet on purpose, but it still took them a full ten days to cover the distance from border to border, cutting very close to the dragon's preferred time-limit. Both were relieved when the dense forest began to thin out, evergreen trees giving way to rolling hills and meadows that was just slightly too green and even to be a result of natural conditions. When they came across the first herd of cattle it served as a call for renewed caution, because they still had no idea whether the news of Lucy's disappearance had reached these parts yet.

Farmsteads began to crop up in the distance, small log-houses with thatched roofs and front porches that seemed both foreign and unsafe to Lucy, who was used to neat, lime-plastered buildings made of stone. Keeping their distance from the houses and fields Natsu and Lucy kept to the ground from now on, walking along the forest edge to avoid drawing attention to themselves. When a small gathering of houses suddenly appeared among the trees they were both surprised. Despite being no more than a cluster of maybe ten or fifteen buildings, it was nevertheless the first village they had come across in two weeks.

Natsu pulled the runaway princess along as he immediately spun around and retreated further back into the woods, not stopping until they could barely make out the buildings anymore. The way he frowned as he eyed the settlement showed quite clearly how much he disliked the thought of going there, but when he quietly suggested that they went around Lucy placed fisted hands on her hips and shook her head determinedly.

"_No_, Natsu. I know we have to be careful, but we can't just keep on sneaking around like this! Sooner or later we _have_ to start entering towns again - how do you suggest we find information without going into villages?"

"There are ways" he mumbled shiftily as he hunched down, elbows on knees as he leered in the direction of the small dirt road that lead northwards from the village. "Sooner or later they have to come outside..."

There was a dark gleam in his eyes that she didn't like at all. Lucy had tried her hardest to forget about that first night on the hill and for the most part she had succeeded, but now the memory of his cold, callous actions returned with horrible clarity. She didn't like it, _not at all_ - it was a side of the dragon she had not come to terms with, so far opting to close her eyes and look away.

"And what will happen when you've 'talked' to them? Natsu you _promised_..." Her voice was quiet, almost pleading. He looked up and the girl swallowed thickly, nervous despite herself beneath the weight of those eyes. It was as though a different person entirely was gazing out, not at all related to the boisterous and sometimes downright goofy man.

"I did" he admitted after a while, sighing as he rubbed the back of his neck. "I still don't like the thought of waltzing in without a care. Even if they don't know anything yet, two strangers in a remote place like this _will_ be remembered."

Lucy leaned back against a tree as she looked down over herself, then eyed the dragon critically. "We'll stand out even more if we wait until we reach more well-traveled areas" she pointed out, grimacing slightly after a closer look at her own hands. "Look at us - dirty hair, unwashed, burn marks on the clothes... We could as well hang signs around our necks that says 'hey, we don't want to travel on the main roads'. If we want to blend in we need baths and clothes and a plan on where to go, and we don't get _any_ of that in the woods."

Natsu grimaced impatiently, recognizing the truth in what she said but still reluctant.

"What if we go around and enter from another direction?" Lucy suggested, carefully keeping herself from rolling her eyes. "Say we need to leave the country, do they have any idea what's going on in other places...?"

A muscle worked in his jaw as the rosy-haired man considered it, finally nodding as he stood up. "Better than nothing" he admitted. "But we're not staying long, just for news, food and clothes!"

The girl agreed quite readily and followed as Natsu led the way through the forest, barely able to contain her excitement. Her heart seemed to skip every other beat as they stepped in between the crummy little houses, cheerfully ignoring her own acknowledgment that this place really wasn't much to look at. There was only one street that wound like a brown streak of hard-packed earth through the clearing, until it ended abruptly in a grass-covered square at the very center of the village. The houses were the same as every other she had seen so far, rough structures consisting of logs that had been stacked on top of one another. The roofs were made of either thatch or wooden shingles and sloped almost all the way down to the ground, suggesting that the winters this close to the mountains were harsh and came with plenty of snow. Not many people were around at this time of day, either off working the fields or tending to animals. Those that did move about inescapably turned their heads at the sight of strangers, and it didn't take long before a small crowd had gathered on the square, curious murmurs rising like a sigh of wind under the bright daylight.

"It is unusual indeed to receive guests at this time of year" a voice creaked from somewhere in the group of people. Lucy and Natsu turned as one to regard a thin, hunch-backed elder that came wobbling towards them. "Might I ask what your purpose here may be?" Bleary eyes clipped curiously at the pair, focusing on the dragon as Natsu stepped up to reply.

Lucy only listened with half an ear to the conversation and passed the time looking around the square and the people that stood gawking at her. It had been so long since she had last endured this kind of attention that it felt very uncomfortable at first. Awareness of her exposed legs, the grease in her hair and the dirty half-moons beneath cracked and splintered nails made her shift from foot to foot, sneaking envious peeks at the womens long, heavy skirts and blindingly white head-cloths. When a flock of children came tumbling by she was grateful for the distraction, smiling happily at the curious boys and girls that kept looking back over their shoulders despite sharp admonitions from their parents.

Hearing footsteps in the grass the blonde tucked a strand of hair behind an ear as she turned her attention back to Natsu, a silent query kindling in the gentle brown eyes when she noticed a slight frown.

"Bad news?"

"No news at _all_ apparently" he answered quietly, stopping very close so he could speak without being overheard by the villagers. "They don't have clothes to spare either, but at least we'll get food to bring along..."

"What's bothering you then?" She waved a little at a teenage girl that stared a little too blatantly, her face impassive and lips barely moving as she spoke. T to think that tricks like that still could come in handy, she had thought she would never need to say anything without drawing attention to herself again. Lucy didn't even have to look at her friend to know that something was wrong - it was all in his tone, in the way he shoved his hands deep into the pockets of his pants.

"Can't really put my finger on it. That old man... I don't think he's lying, but I'm not sure he's telling me everything he knows either."

Following the flight of a dove as it rose from somewhere between the houses, she tried to imagine what might make a person be dishonest to strangers. Then she had to sigh at herself and turned to give her friend a small smile, shoulders dropping as tension suddenly dissipated, replaced by a desire to laugh.

"You don't think he's just wary because we're strange people in a village full of people that know each other? Maybe he is simply scared."

Natsu regarded her quietly for a moment, then sighed and nodded. "Maybe. I hope that's all - damn I hate being this paranoid!"

He grimaced so wildly that she really had to laugh this time, quietly agreeing. She longed for a day when they would be able to walk through a town without looking over their shoulders, simply going about their business with nothing to worry about.

After handing over some coins in return for a satchel filled with bread, cheese and dried meats the friends left the village, carefully returning the way they had come until the village was out of sight and they were sure no one was following them. Once they felt safe they slipped south and then east again, giving the houses a wide berth as they continued further into the country.

As the day progressed the air grew steadily warmer. Summer had arrived for real in these parts and the landscape was lush and green, the swaying grasses littered with flowers in every color, shape and size. When the evergreen trees gave way to tall, breezy birches and the fenced off fields grew more numerous they finally stepped onto the road, Lucy amusing herself with tying wreaths of flowers and admiring the passing scenery. It was peaceful and idyllic, a pastoral picture painted by rolling hills and well-tended fields, yet there was a hap-hazard willfulness to the farms and houses they passed that suited her far more than the strict order that ruled in Firoe. This really was a place where the people did more or less as they pleased, settling their own disputes regardless of what the outcome would do to appearances. A perpetual smile had settled over her lips, teeth flashing white and happy whenever Natsu said something that made her laugh.

The sun was already sinking behind the tall mountains by the time they reached the second village. Yellow light poured out into the blue dusk from a multitude of windows, the sheer number suggesting that this place was far bigger than the previous one. This time they didn't take the time to go around and enter from the other side and simply followed the road in between houses. They too were bigger here, some rising two or even three stories off the ground with walls rapped with mud and straw. The street was broader and appeared better maintained, and when they reached the square Lucy found that the grassy field had been surrounded by cobbled sidewalks and a low stone wall that kept grazing geese and chickens from running off.

"There's an inn" Natsu noted as he too looked around, nudging a chin towards a building across the square that had more windows than the others. A wooden sign swayed in the slight breeze, colorful paint depicting a simple snow-capped mountain that had to represent the name of the place.

"Think we can get the things we need there?" she asked, eying the building longingly. What she wouldn't do for a bath, to sleep in a real bed again...

"Too late for any shops to be open anyway, so we might as well" Natsu responded, draping an arm around her shoulders while smirking amusedly. "If you're to stop being a lady then I'll have to work on this paranoia of mine... I'll start now."

"About _bloody_ time!"

Laughter followed in their wake as they stepped into the inn, greeted by a rush of warm air and the scent of firewood, tobacco and food. Blinking against the bright light Lucy gazed about the room and found it smaller than she had expected, little more than a tavern with a few tables and a bar off to the right while a steep, dark staircase took up most of the space to the left. A corridor right up ahead led further into the building, no doubt towards storage rooms and the kitchen. The room was about half full and several heads turned in growing curiosity as the door closed behind them, men and women eying the strangers with mingled wariness and delight. A big, burly man with receding brown hair and a stained apron tied around the waist got up from one of the tables and hurried over, a businesslike smile settling on his angled face even as bleary green eyes assessed them.

"Welcome to Mountain Cap!" he greeted jovially with deep and booming voice - Lucy had been right about the sign and felt rather smug when her theory was confirmed. "It's rare to see travelers in these parts, rare indeed! What can I do for you?"

"Food and lodging - and baths" Natsu said, adding to his words with a slight grimace when Lucy pointedly stepped on his foot. He gave her a sour glance, then rolled his eyes at the wistful sigh she made. "If possible we could use a change of clothes too..."

"Right, right, that'll be about two small silvers, is that alright? Good. Baths first perhaps? Yes. Follow me, this way."

He accepted the coins from Natsu and led the way down the corridor and into a large room with stone floors and paneled walls, empty except for the big wooden barrels that stood before a fireplace, a huge kettle set over the crackling flames filled with steaming water and several smaller buckets with cold water. Several folding screens stood leaned against a wall that offered privacy once they had been set up, and after filling the tubs and digging in a big wooden chest the inn-keeper produced simple yet fully functional clothes for the both of them.

Scrubbing off layers of sweat and grime and sinking into the steaming water was pure bliss, almost as delightful as the thick stew and the creamy cheese and bread they were served for dinner. After spending the better part of a month on the run with few chances to wash and eat her fill, the simple pleasures of being clean and eat until she couldn't swallow more felt like pure luxury. It was impossible to stay tense and on guard when the crackling fire behind her spread its warmth across her back, a complete waste not to smile and laugh along with the dragon as the murmur of voices filled the room with noise, drafts of cool evening air wafting in through the door as people came and went. Leaning against the wall with a tankard of golden ale between her hands Lucy sighed contentedly as she sipped the brew, happier than she could remember being in days, weeks - even years.

Safe and far away from home, the girl wondered why she hadn't ever appreciated the ordinary pleasure of a clean blouse and a decent skirt, of having clean hair that fell in golden streams down her neck, tied back with a simple string. The world was a funny place indeed if it took a month in wilderness for her to appreciate things she had taken for granted before, only to frown at the memory of her beautiful dresses, glittering jewels and grand rooms.

"You look happy." The ruddy-haired man looked quite content as well where he sat, arms draped lazily over the back of his chair. A slow, languid smile teased over his mouth and Lucy returned it with ease, nodding eagerly as she lowered her cup.

"I am. This place, this feeling I have... it's everything I used to dream about. I keep pinching myself, it almost feels too good to be true."

"What, a small village inn at the edge of nowhere? Not exactly a grand dream, shouldn't you be wishing for the world instead?"

She chuckled softly at his teasing tone and turned the head from side to side, firelight making the long hair shimmer and gleam. "I could have had it if I wanted to - or at least a good portion of it. It might not be as big as others, but... Natsu, I don't want to _own_ the world, just _live_ in it like everyone else. That's all I ever dreamed of."

"Well, not _everything_, right? I remember something about adventures and fairies and dragons too..."

"Yes well I don't want to be bored, now do I?" The girl trailed her gaze across the room, eyes lingering briefly on a tall man with messy dark hair and sharp eyes that stepped inside the inn before returning to her friend. "If I'm going to live I'm going to do it _properly_!"

"Mh, that's the spirit! To dragons, fairies and more adventures!" Natsu raised his cup with a wide grin and clanked it against her own, both drinking deeply to the toast. Together they bursting into laughter as the buzz of the drink chased away the last of their worries, enveloping Lucy in a warm, golden glow that lingered long after they retreated to their rooms on the second floor to get some sleep.

* * *

><p>Lucy woke with a start and bolted up in the bed, blankets crumpling in a heap over her knees as she stared around the room.<p>

Something had disturbed her in her sleep, but as she stared around the dark room with heart pounding madly in her chest the girl couldn't remember what. Not a dream, her rest had been deep and peaceful. Nor did anything seem out of place, the walls around her just as barren and plain as they had been before. There were no strange shadows in the corners, no branches tapping on the window, and the night outside was just as cloudy and quiet as it had been when she went to bed.

Yet... for some reason a deep feeling of unease kept her from relaxing.

Quietly the girl got up and dressed, pulling on pants and the clean blouse, tunic and boots as quietly as she could before she stole across the floor and cracked the door open, just enough that she could peer out into the corridor beyond. It was even darker than her room, a red glow from the dying hearth in the main hall the only source of light available, indicating the direction of the stairs. Lucy moistened her lips nervously as she listened with bated breath, pushing the door open a bit more when nothing moved outside. Eyes moved up and down the corridor, examining every inch of space from floor to ceiling - nothing.

Was she imagining things? Natsu's paranoia must be contagious, Lucy could have sworn she heard something, but there was clearly nothing to see. Teeth teased her lower lip in silent thought as she pondered what to do, cogs whirring rapidly in her head.

It was probably nothing at all, maybe a cat thumping after some rodent - definitely not something she should be worried about. But even as she thought that the gold-haired woman slipped back inside her room and gathered up her belongings, creating a small bundle of skirt and spare shirt that she shoved down into the bag. Slipping the strap over her shoulder she tripped out into the corridor on silent feet, closing the door behind her before making her way towards Natsu's room - why did he have to be placed so far away, surely the inn couldn't have this many guests at the same time?

Her hand was already reaching out to tap at the wooden door when a sound of something scraping against the floor-boards made her turn on the spot. A high-pitched squeal tore from her throat as a figure leaped towards her in the dark while hard, rough fingers clasped painfully around her upper arm and dragged her off down the corridor.

"What are you...!? Stop it, _let me go_!"

Lucy dropped her bag and fought the shadow with increasing frenzy, fear rising like bile in her throat as she fought to free herself, the free hand clawing at the dark fingers that dragged her off. This was not Natsu, it was not a sick joke or a prank gone awry. Whoever it was stood much too tall to be her friend, the strides too different. There was a sound of movement from the room behind as her loud protests echoed against the walls, but she was already being hoisted down the steps and out from the inn despite her struggles.

"Are you _deaf_, I said _let go_! Get your hands _off of me..!_"

"Don't be so fucking loud, I can hear you just fine!" a male voice grunted impatiently, as dark and rough as the blow that struck her across the face just as the hand on her arm let go.

Pain flared up in her cheek and made Lucy gasp, the force of the strike enough to send her tumbling to the ground. Air rushed from her lungs and made lights flare before her eyes, but she didn't give herself time to pause. Wheezing and panicked she scrambled to get away, propelled onto hands and knees by reeling dread. More pain exploded through her when a heavy boot was brought down into her back, halfway between kick and stomp. She screamed.

"Hey hey hey, be a bit careful will ya!" someone said when the girl let out a breathless sob from the pain. This voice different from the first - smoother, colder and with a lilting tone of amusement that was more terrifying than the foot that ground her into the cobbled street. "Precious goods that is, the boss won't be happy if it arrives in pieces."

"As if I care" the first man snapped, raising the foot a smidgen before driving it back down so hard that that she couldn't even scream, just grunt as air was driven from her lungs in a painful wheeze. "I'm sick and tired of boring jobs like these. They don't pay enough, it's a fucking pain in the ass and all this fucking _screaming_ make my ears bleed."

"Natsu... _NATSU_..! Agh!" The name was a pained whimper ripped from her lips, a shouting plea for help cut short when a heel digging into the spine made her cry out.

"That guy ain't coming" the mocking voice cackled.

Boots scraped against stone as a shape moved in the night, shadows taking form as it hunched down in front of her, turning into a big, bearish man with narrow face, hard eyes and a mane of dark hair that tumbled down the back. Metal hoops glistened across his face, and there was a nasty grin around the mouth as he grasped a handful of hair and pulled her head off the ground. Lucy recognized him, he had entered the inn earlier that night. But why...?

"Had the inn-keep add some 'spice' to his drink, see, so he's aaaall out by now. Strong stuff that, could kill a _dragon_ if you're not careful." There was a nasty gleam of satisfaction in his eyes that made her go cold.

"Who are you?! What do you _want_?!" Despair threatened to take over but Lucy made her voice hard and angry instead. She didn't want to show these men her tears, didn't want to believe that Natsu wouldn't hear her - there was _no way_ he would be taken out by something like poison. Right?

"Hey hey, for being a noble chick you're quite dumb, aren't you?" A cold dread enveloped her, realization dawning on her face even as the black-haired brute threw the head back in a cackle. "Oh yes, just what you're suspecting. We're here to bring back the runaway bitch of a princess who gave our Firoe colleagues so much trouble. A lucrative business if I ever saw one."

"Enough blabbing, you tryin ta wake the whole village?" Her tormentor reached down and hoisted Lucy up on her feet by an arm, shaking her hard when she immediately opened her mouth to scream. Ropes dug into her wrists as her hands were forced behind the back, coils so tight that her fingers lost their warmth almost right away.

Perfectly willing to ignore the rough handling Lucy still tried to scream but could only manage a loud squawk before a thick, coarse bundle of cloth was forced into her mouth and stifled the sound.

Their work was so quick, so horribly efficient that she thought they must have done this a hundred times before. She did her utmost to fight back but they were too strong - within moments she was hoisted up and thrown sideways over the back of a horse she hadn't even noticed before, the poor animal shying and nervous under her wriggling weight. Lucy kicked and screamed through the gag, tears finally escaping to roll down her cheeks in hot, furious, terrified streaks.

This wasn't supposed to happen, they had been so careful!

How could they have caught up, why did these men know where she was - and how had they managed to drug Natsu without him noticing? There were so many things that just didn't make sense, but the questions all faded in the face of the plain, simple, merciless fact; she had been caught, and only the stars knew what kind of treatment she would suffer before she was back in Firoe.

"Alright, we're done here. Let's get moving..."

Saddles creaked and reins jingled in the dark night as they sat up, the dark-haired man on another horse while the stomper sank into the saddle behind her. Hard fingers kept her in place as they urged the animals forward, shod hooves ringing like bells as they started towards the road that led out of the village.

A final, desperate scream reached through the cloth and echoed wordlessly between the houses before a blow to the back of her head made her go limp.

Only one word remained in her thoughts as darkness rose up to claim her, her single flickering candle of hope that Lucy refused to let go of.

"_Nat..su..._"


	10. Chapter 10

It would have been easier if she had remained unconscious, but after only a short while the girl was forced to endure pain and humiliation she was not accustomed to handling. A month of walking, running, hiding and falling over while in the company of a dragon that never tired had hardened the princess somewhat, but nothing had prepared her for what she went through now. Natsu never staved off boredom by tormenting her with pinches and slaps, never pulled her hair or mocked her with foul curses whenever the pain grew too intense to ignore. Hanging like a sack of grain over the bobbing whithers of a horse was bad enough, add the callous torture to that and Lucy soon stopped holding back her tears, finding it utterly pointless. What was the use of saving face when her angry glares or mute resistance only made it worse?

Her captors rode hard throughout the remainder of the night. Slowly the dark sky paled in the east, bleak fingers of sunlight hesitantly testing the blanket of clouds without really managing to break through. The air grew warmer but the clear skies of the previous day were nowhere to be found, muting the colors of the landscape into something less stunning and far more ominous.

They kept to the road and didn't take any detours, which was a relief for the girl. Fearing the consequences if she did anything stupid while on horseback, Lucy kept herself as still and quiet as she could, focusing more on the surroundings and the villages they passed through.

Galunar might be a small country but the amount of people that lived within the borders became more and more apparent. Farms dotted the landscape within sight of one another and the houses in the villages grew steadily larger and more crowded, until they resembled small towns and cities rather than the rugged settlements they were. Still no more than a few miles from the border the place was already heavily populated, but no one seemed to look twice at the peculiar trio that blazed past along the road. They kept their heads down and minded their own business - after the initial shock and confusion died down, Lucy grimly recalled what Natsu had said about the place. Thieves and rogues and plenty of gangs, things like kidnappings and rough treatment must be every day occurrences here.

She was glad when they finally stopped by a small shelter along the road sometime before noon and she was let down on the ground. Keeping up the resigned facade was difficult, but the men seemed to buy it. She kept her eyes down, did nothing when the pierced man aimed a kick into her ribs in passing. He snorted and kept going, not bothering with another glance. They left her unguarded while they tended to the horses, lying in a heap on the ground, arms still bound and her mouth gagged.

That was a mistake. Lucy might be restrained, but she could still use her legs. The Trackers had barely turned their backs on her before she rolled up on her feet, ducked behind the shelter and started to run, terror driving her on as she sped back down the same way they had come.

Angry shouts altered her to being pursued, but their threats and curses was spurring her own even faster. She had to go back to find Natsu and make sure he was alright, had to find a way to escape the men that steadily gained on her for every step. The binds made it hard to run, to breathe; stumbling on the even ground she felt the tip of her boot catch onto something on the road and sent her headfirst onto the ground, the impact nearly knocking her out again.

In a heartbeat they Trackers were over her, and they were furious. Especially the tall, sharp-eyed man seemed to take her trickery personally because he didn't hold back in the slightest as he kicked her hard in the gut, hands trembling from rage as they dragged her up by the collar only to knock her down to the ground again. Lucy coughed and gagged, grinding her teeth together to stifle a scream.

The pain was nearly more than she could stand. Perhaps it would have been easier if there had been a purpose to the beating, if she'd had a reason to be strong and stay quiet - but this violence had no other purpose than to satisfy their thirst for blood. It was so pointless, so crude and uncalled for - wouldn't they receive less gold for her if she was returned bloody and broken? But they seemed to have forgotten all about that, all but the cruel pleasure of hearing her scream and whimper as they kicked, stomped, hit and dragged her around by the hair.

When a booted leg drew back for a final kick, Lucy thought it had to be the end. It aimed for her head as it came swinging back; she snapped her eyes shut with a wince, waiting for the blinding flash of pain to drive her back into unconsciousness.

Nothing happened.

Instead the air filled with the sound of screams and beating wings, searing curses she didn't even know the meaning of. Looking up she found the sharp-eyed bandit swept several feet up into the air and dangling in a choke hold from strong fingers. They dug deep into the neck until the man thrashed and screamed in pain. Dark blood spilled from the wounds onto over even hotter scales that burned a furious crimson, so bright that they seemed to glow even in the dim light of day. A horrible gurgling sound Lucy remembered all too well quieted the screams as blood streamed down the mans throat, and with a careless jerk the dragon threw him aside, already heading for the dark-haired offender by the time the body hit the ground, thrashing and convulsing in throws of death.

"Natsu!"

Relief battled with mounting trepidation as Lucy watched him dive, in too much pain to move or do even move. Natsu's face was contorted with rage as he swooped down on the narrow-faced tracker, more dragon-like and frightening than she had ever seen him before. Flames licked his fist as he aimed a bone-shattering blow at the man's face.

Instead of connecting however the man raised his crossed arms and blocked, dust swirling around his feet as he skidded back across the road.

"Yo, Salamander, long time no see! Fancy seeing _you_ here, I thought you'd be out cold for at least the rest of the day."

Lucy gasped and stared at the kidnapper's arms where the fire had burned through his dark coat. Instead of fragile skin they were dressed in large scales, shimmering in metallic hues all the way down to the hands, which suddenly looked a lot like Natsu's. Not only the hands though, but the face was changing as well - the metal scales spread slowly from the neck and up until every inch of skin was covered, wings and a long, smooth tail bursting from the back of the shoulders with a sound of tearing cloth.

No, it couldn't be. It wasn't possible, how _could_ it... but unless her own eyes were playing tricks on her, the man really wasn't a man at all but a... dragon. A dragon just like Natsu, who looked, if possible, even angrier.

"GAJEEL! What the _fuck_ do you think you're doing here!?" He dropped down on the ground, snarling in outrage as he stared at the other, tail thrashing back and forth.

The girl snapped her eyes onto the friend in shock, her mind reeling. He _knew_ this person? Never mind that they were both dragons, they even knew each other's names?

"Working or course, what does it look like?" Gajeel sneered evilly and threw her a short look, eyes cold enough to make her shudder in fright. "A dragon's gotta make a living..."

"I always knew you were a shitty bastard, but to think you'd stoop so low as to work with the Trackers! Don't you have any pride?" Natsu growled and moved until he stood between herself and Gajeel, blocking her from view with the leathery wings. "I don't even care why, you hurt Lucy and for that I'll beat you into a fucking _pulp_!"

A dark, bloodthirsty grin spread across the black-haired dragon's face as Natsu smacked a fist into his open palm, flames bursting forth with a menacing whoosh as he started forward. For several long moments the dragons sized each other up, the pressure from the mounting tension alone enough to leave Lucy with dry mouth and frantic pulse, as terrified as she was awed by the sight. But the moment Natsu surged in to dish out the punishment he had promised, the metal dragon cackled and kicked off into the air, gusts of wind stirring up the dust on the road as he raised himself higher with steady wingbeats.

"Gehehe, I'll admit that you're strong, Salamander, too strong to take down _quickly_" he said with a sneer as he looked down at Natsu, who snarled angrily in response to the taunt. "Normally I'd take you on in a heartbeat, but since you killed my partner it would be... _impractical_ to fight here. Go ahead and take the bitch, run and hide all you want - this is only the beginning, they're never going to stop coming after her!"

"Shut up! Get back here, you fucking asshole!" Gajeel was already flying off however, a sinister cackle lingering in his wake.

For a moment Natsu seemed about to go after him, body quivering in barely contained rage while the long tail thrashed furiously against the ground. It took several deep breaths and a harangue of swears for him to calm down enough to turn back, anger still burning in the dark eyes as he came hurrying towards her.

It was quickly replaced by worry as he dropped down beside her, the clawed hands surprisingly gentle as he removed the gag and untied the ropes from her wrists.

"You okay, Lucy?"

"If being alive means okay..." she tried to smile, only to wince and clutch her stomach as pain shot through her torso. She felt nauseous.

Calloused fingers examined her quickly to see if there were broken bones, but even though he couldn't find any Natsu looked grim when he carefully turned her face and saw the bruises that began to form on the pale skin.

"They beat you up pretty good" he hissed. "I'll kick that brain dead idiot senseless when I see him next time! Doing something like this... Lucy? What's wrong?"

She shook her head, lips tight and trembling in their struggle to hold back a sob. Hot tears were rolling down her cheeks again, emotions overflowing now that she had time to feel again.

"N-nothing. I'm just... so glad that you're alright. I was afraid that they had..! They said you were..."

Natsu looked confused for a moment, then seemed to realize what she was talking about. His face fell, a guilty look taking over as he carefully raised her up to sit.

"Ah, that. I'm sorry Lucy, its... kinda my fault it took so long to get here. I noticed from the start that something was off with my drink, but I... didn't think it would be potent enough to actually do anything. So I... kinda..."

"You drank it _anyway_?!" she said incredulously, the tears stopping from pure shock. "What if it was poison, you could have _died_!"

"Hey, it's not that easy to kill a dragon!" he protested, though it was a feeble one indeed. "Usually that kind of stuff don't do anything, and I didn't feel strange at all to begin with. But... when I woke and heard you scream and tried to get over to help, my body sort of seized up... I couldn't move for hours."

Lucy shook her head in disbelief, tempted to laugh at the sheer stupidity of it if she hadn't been in so much pain. Even sitting up hurt however, and she was grateful for the supporting arm around her back that kept her upright.

"How did you know where we were?" she asked faintly, trying to look at her friend despite the swelling that had begun to close one of her eyes. Mostly she just wanted to close her eyes and curl up on the ground in agony, but the sight of the dragon's face was too precious right now. Lucy hadn't realized how much she depended on him until they'd been separated. Not just for protection, but mentally... just having him there made her feel like she could endure anything.

"The inn-keeper was _very_ cooperative" he replied, a dangerous glitter about his grin that made her more worried than reassured. "He started talking very fast when I set the inn on fire."

"Natsu, you didn't...?!"

"Oh, don't worry, he's still alive. Might not want to _walk_ for a while... but he won't sell out his guests again, I'll tell you that."

"Oh _dear_..."

Was a royal beat down _really_ better than a swift death? Lucy thought about her own pain and tried picturing how the poor man must be feeling right now, and shuddered in misplaced sympathy. She very pointedly avoided to look at the dead man in the ditch and Natsu didn't acknowledge him with so much as a look when he got to his feet and picked her up, opting to simply carry her and fly rather than walk.

"No point in hiding anymore" he explained when she asked about it, wings already raising them into the air with steady beats. "They know we're here now, we know they're after us and if Gajeel is involved he will probably know that we're headed for Isval. We'll just have to stay ahead of them from now on."

"Why do you know someone like him?" She didn't like the thought at all, almost didn't want to hear what kind of connection two dragons could have when one of them was capable of hurting her like that. Did it mean that Natsu might have...? But she already knew that he could be cold and callous, that he wouldn't hesitate to kill if necessary, or in the heat of the moment like now. Were all dragon's like that?

"We've clashed a few times before over work" was the answer she received, delivered with obvious dislike. "He has a way of picking the dirtiest, most disgusting jobs there is, which means we usually get in each others way."

"Work? What kind of work?" It sounded much better than them being old friends, so Lucy latched onto the idea like a drowning to a string. Talking was better than thinking, better than feeling the throbbing pain of her limbs and face.

"I'm taking on requests for help" he replied quite willingly, a long glance down on her face suggesting he understood her plight. "Sometimes people want a monster to be taken down, a bodyguard on a long trip, or maybe help retrieving some book or trinket that's been stolen. Usually interesting, I get to travel a lot and the money I get tend to be worth the risks."

"Sounds fun" she murmured, wishing her mouth didn't hurt too much to form a smile. The wind was cold this high up, the draft enough to make her shiver. Lucy was glad that Natsu had remembered the bag before he burned down the inn, she wouldn't mind a change of clothes later... "You think I can do that too?"

"Of course you can! You're smart, so there will definitely be plenty of jobs. If we team up there won't be anything we can't do. Especially when you've learned magic..."

"Wait, I'm_ learning magic_? Since when?" This was news to her, Lucy had to raise a brow at the dragon in face of this arbitrary decision. Sure, the thought made a flutter of excitement pass through her and her flexible mind immediately conjured images of herself shooting balls of fire from her hands and... well. Fire was the only magic she had ever seen, she wasn't even sure what all one could do with it.

"Huh? I thought you wanted to - you looked so eager back when you saw my flames..."

"Well... _sure_, it'd be fun and useful and... but are you sure I can? Not everyone is able to use it you know." She made a defensive gesture with her hands, careful not to aggravate the rope-burns around her wrists. The ground rushed by like a quilted blanket far below, but the girl was not afraid of falling anymore. Natsu would never drop her, never let go.

"I know you can" the man said firmly with a strange confidence that had no basis whatsoever in the real world. "If you really want to there's nothing you can't do."

The way he looked at her was so filled with faith and trust that the girl felt color rise to her cheeks, suddenly feeling plenty of pressure. If Natsu would go so far as to say something like that then she wouldn't have a choice but to try, would she? And if she succeeded... A thought hit her so suddenly that she had to grab onto him, forced to smile widely despite the various pains and aches it caused.

"Natsu, you're a _genius_!"

"Huh?" He looked oddly flattered, but the expression was ruined by the confused blinking.

"Magic, Natsu, _me_ learning magic! Mages aren't allowed in Firoe, you know that. So if I become one... won't that mean my father has to give up on bringing me back? I'd have to be exiled right away even if he did!"

He stared at her, comprehension slowly dawning until he returned her smile with a grin that looked almost evil in its wicked delight.

"Better get to Isval as quickly as possible then" he cackled. "I know loads of people that can teach you, really strong mages... What kind of magic do you want?"

"I don't know... what kinds are there?"

"Almost anything you can imagine!"

He set off on a long rant on all the things he had seen people do and Lucy listened quietly, more grateful for the distraction than she wanted him to know. What use was there in revealing that the steady rise and fall of his wings made her sore stomach clench painfully with each beat, or that his arm pressed against blackened bruises on her back until lights danced before her eyes? They couldn't stop now, it would take days before the pain went away, and with pursuers hot on their heels it would be foolish to waste time.

Lucy chose to endure in silence - it was something she was good at, after having done it her entire life.

And if it was for her favorite, best and only friend and savior, she wouldn't mind doing it some more.


	11. Chapter 11

They covered a good amount of distance that as the landscape slowly changed below. From steep hills and heavy spruce forests the ground flattened out the further east they got, until the rise and fall of green ridges became gentle as the bobbing waves on a lake, draped in lush leafy groves and interspersed with towns and scattered farmlands. At some point during the day Natsu changed the course and brought them gradually more towards the north, intending to bring them towards the borders of Isval as fast as he possibly could.

When they stopped for the night it was outside the largest town they had come across so far, a sprawling mass of houses that resembled a small city with it's stone buildings, shingled rooftops and an actual wall around its perimeter, even if it was just a crude stock palisade. Lucy was able to walk by herself as they entered along a paved road but despite her insistence that she was feeling fine, it was a relief to sink down in a chair at the new inn they had found. Bruises might not be as bad as broken bones, but the pain of them was still intense enough to leave her pale and trembling. She knew that Natsu was watching her with mounting concern, so the girl kept her voice even and the smiles bright - though the latter was decidedly less convincing since her cheek was swollen and bruised, the lip cut and prone to bleeding if she stretched it too far.

Still, she was grateful that the dragon let her keep up the charade of strength and bravery, because Lucy desperately needed to hold herself together. The thought that the whole incident was her fault - for being naive and careless, for being too weak to defend herself - just wouldn't leave her alone, though she was wise enough not to let Natsu hear about it. Two scoldings on the subject was plenty to go around, the princess was not going to subject herself to another.

They ate in silence and kept shooting wary looks at the other customers that frequented the inn, vigilance doubled now that they knew for sure that they were targeted. Once she was finished Lucy retreated to the baths to clean herself up - "No Natsu, you _don't_ get to help!" - and after spending a painful hour scrubbing herself and examining the blackened bruises on back, face, torso and arms in a tall mirror she dressed and returned back to the dragon.

Only to find that he wasn't alone and bored as she had expected, but wrapped in cheeful conversation with a young woman that had sat down by the table.

Lucy eyed her in mingled surprise and suspicion, a sudden sinking feeling in her stomach that she didn't have name for. The girl was incredibly cute, short and lithe with a doll-like face and short hair that sprawled in a bluish-black mane, kept away from the eyes by a headband. Her clothes were neat and simple, Lucy noted with some surprise that she was wearing slim cloth pants rather than a skirt, along with a light blouse and a sleeveless vest that made the arms seem even thinner.

There was a natural grace to the spirited movements of her hands, and as the blonde hesitantly approached the table she became all the more aware of her own height, the width of her hips and bust - weren't they a bit _too_ big in comparison? - and the ugly bruises on her face.

Natsu didn't seem to notice her awkwardness. He was smiling widely as he looked up and waved her over with an enthusiasm that made something roil in her gut as she sat down beside him, something ugly and slimy and...

"There you are! You won't believe this Lucy, guess who this is? It's Levy, a friend from home! Talk about coincidence, right?!"

The tentacles froze in startled hesitation and Lucy blinked as she turned to look at the girl, who was even cuter up close. A dazzling smile brightened her face as she leaned forward over the tabletop, a hand reaching out in a greeting so cheerful and unabashed that Lucy suddenly felt ashamed.

"Hi, I'm Levy! Natsu told me what happened, are you feeling alright? Those bruises look painful Lu... ah, can I call you Lu?"

It was hard to remain suspicious in face of this bubbling enthusiasm and honest concern. As she accepted the small hand in greeting the tired girl found to her own surprise that she was returning the smile, albeit more hesitant and shy.

"Uh, sure, I don't mind. I'm alright, a bit sore but... How come you are here, Levy?"

"Interesting coincidence, isn't it!? I was really surprised too - I'm here on a job, someone wanted a text translated but wouldn't send the original to me, so I had to come all the way here."

"On your own?" Lucy said in surprise - she couldn't believe that someone so small and pretty would be left alone on the road.

"Oh no, I've got my team with me - they're over there, Jet and Droy." She pointed at a nearby table where two slender young men sat slumped, looking exhausted. The blonde one looked like he was about to fall asleep on the table, while the other was busy stuffing his face with food - they looked up when they heard their names but just nodded in greeting before returning to their own thoughts.

"Looks like you've had a rough time" Natsu commented with a grin. He seemed extraordinarily pleased with himself, eyes roaming from Lucy to Levy and back in hopeful expectation.

"Yeah, well. Apparently there's a rumor that the text will reveal the location of a hidden treasure, so we have been pestered by bandits every day for the past week. The translation is taking more time than I'd hoped too so it will be a rough few days before we are finished... But what about you guys? Did something happen on your job, Natsu?"

"Nah, I finished that alright. Took a detour on the way back and decided to bring Lucy along." There it was again, that smug self-satisfied grin that wouldn't have looked out of place on a cat that'd just caught a mouse. Lucy rolled her eyes at him and swatted away the finger that teasingly prodded her good cheek.

"Oh yes, because breaking into a castle is only a _slight detour_" she quipped. "Which makes all that happened so far nothing more than a _minor setback_, right? The running and hiding and..."

Natsu caught the hands that had begun to count off their numerous troubles and waved a placating hand, grinning like an idiot.

"Yeah yeah, so we've had some problems..."

"Still have them!"

"...but it'll be fine! We already agreed on a plan, so..."

"What kind of plan? What are you talking about?" Levy leaned forward again, looking eager and curious as her eyes moved between the two.

"He told you what's happened, right?" Lucy waited for a nod before continuing. "Well, there are people trying to take me back to Firoe, but I figure that if I learn magic..."

"Oh, they'll have to stop looking, won't they!"

Lucy nodded and smiled back at her, pleasantly surprised by how quickly the girl caught on - she was clearly intelligent.

"That's a great idea! If you want to I can try to help, I found some really interesting books the other day and I'm sure they'll be useful!"

"Really!?"

Any suspicion or hard feelings that might have lingered within the fair-haired woman disappeared completely in face of this offer. Bubbling with excitement the girls got up and headed off towards Levy's room and the waiting books - Lucy threw Natsu a quick glance but saw him wave her off with a grin, already moving over to sit down with Jet and Droy. So she quenched the guilt before it could grow and turned her attention back to her new friend, eagerly sinking down on the bed while she began to rummage through a big bag filled to the brim with heavy tomes.

"What kind of magic are you looking for?" the slender lass asked absently as she brought out volume after volume and stacked them on the floor beside her.

"I don't really know... Levy, I have no idea if I can even _learn_ in the first place."

"Then, something simple and effective that you can develop gradually... _Aha_!"

Picking out the biggest book of them all she brought it along as she joined Lucy on the bed, opening the cover and paging through until she stopped on a chapter that was titled 'Summoning spells'.

Accepting the book as it was handed to her, Lucy skimmed through the pages with mounting concern, her enthusiasm fading whenever she stumbled on a complicated diagram or extensive calculation.

"This doesn't seem simple at _all_" she mumbled absently as she tried to understand the numbers, frowning slightly as she pushed a lock of hair behind an ear. "The theory alone is..."

"The theory is complicated, yes, and it takes some preparation, but summoning in itself is really easy. Look here." Levy pointed at a section of the text that seemed to be about star summons. "This part especially; you just draw the symbol of the constellation on something, like a piece of paper or wood or... and then you channel magic through it to call the spirit, and it appears. Piece of cake!"

"How do you channel magic?" This was the part that Lucy was most uncertain about - she had no idea what something like that would even feel like.

"It's... uh... Let me get another book!"

They spent several hours pouring through texts in search for the very basics of basics, and when Lucy finally returned to her own room her head was buzzing with instructions on meditation, channeling practices and information on stars. Her hands clutched around the book filled with star charts and astrology terms she had been given, so wound up by the prospect of learning magic that it took a long time before she could get to sleep.

* * *

><p>She wished that they could have stayed and talked more with these friendly people, but Levy and her team had work to do and Natsu and Lucy had to keep going, the faster the better.<p>

"Don't worry Lu, I'll see you when we're all back home!" the small young woman promised when they said goodbye the following morning, embracing the princess with fervor - only to let go with a flustered apology as Lucy winced in agony. "You'll probably get there before we do - show me your new skills when I get back, alright!"

"Mmh, it's a promise!"

"You guys better be careful for a while" Natsu warned as he pocketed his hands, far more rested than Lucy was. "Trackers might show up around here if they think we're still around, and Gajeel is among them, so..."

"Oh. Yeah, we'll be careful. Maybe changing inns..." Levy's face suddenly fell at the mention of the name, a sadness in her eyes that Lucy didn't understand. The girl rubbed a sleeveless arm for a moment, then perked up again and broke out into a new smile - it just wasn't as unrestrained as before, and made Lucy want to ask what was wrong.

"Alright, we need to go. Take care Lu, Natsu! See you later!"

She took off with her partners dragging after in her wake. Lucy watched her go until they disappeared in the milling crowd, then turned to Natsu as they too began to walk, heading for the outskirts of town before they took off.

"What was that about?" she asked curiously, still feeling that twinge of concern as she thought of Levy's downcast expression. "Does she know Gajeel too?"

"Yeah, in a way... They had a run-in about a year ago that didn't end well... I don't know the details of it, just that Levy was beaten pretty badly." There was a scowl on his face as he walked, the subject of the metal dragon enough to make him seethe with pent up anger.

"I see..." Then maybe it had been fear, not sadness she had seen. Lucy certainly couldn't blame the girl, she wasn't exactly eager to face off against the bushy-haired man herself.

"Anyway, what was that about showing your skills? Levy taught you something?" They were both eager to drop the gloomy subject, so Lucy very willingly told her friend about what she had been doing the evening before.

".. so once I've learned how to manifest the energy I will try summoning one of the smaller signs and see what happens" she wrapped up, beaming at the prospect of it. "I can't wait, it'll be so much fun!"

"Heh, sounds interesting. You're really not trying fire then?" He conjured a small flame on a finger and wagged it back and forth before her, tempting her teasingly with the bright glow.

"Yeah, I think having one hot-headed idiot is enough" Lucy retaliated, grinning as she had the satisfaction of seeing him twist the face in outrage.

"What was that!? Who's _hot-headed_, huh?" He swatted playfully at her and Lucy ducked, poking her tongue at as she danced out of reach.

"Yup, _definitely_ an idiot!" she laughed, then let out a startled squawk and began to run as the dragon growled playfully and tried to swat at her again.

Blue skies and a warm breeze made the following days more pleasant than they strictly ought to be. There no signs of pursuers, but this time Lucy listened readily to the dragon's words of caution, holding back her complaints as they spent hours detouring around settlements to leave as few traces of their passing as possible. Despite the constant vigilance, traveling was much more pleasant now than it had been in the wilds. They took the risk that came with the presence of people in favor of warm meals and comfortable beds, and as they closed in on the northern border their mood lightened considerably, to the point where they spent more time laughing and bickering than scouting for pursuers.

"Once we're in Isval they can't do _anything_!" Natsu assured her at one point as they stopped to let him rest, his spirits high despite the obvious tiredness that made his eyes droop. "The queen never agree to exchange of fugitives, once you're inside the country and want to stay you'll be considered a citizen."

"What keeps them from chasing after us anyway?" the girl wondered, thoroughly suspicious now that she had learned her lesson - being naive had gotten her in trouble before, no _way_ it would happen again.

"They might try, but people are much more attentive than here" the dragon shrugged as he stretched out in the grass, yawning lazily beneath the warm sunlight. "If someone tries anything funny the army will be notified, the offenders caught and that's that..."

"Can they do anything against a _dragon_?"

"Hmm... depends." Natsu pondered for a while, eyes lingering on her folded legs and the long dark-blue skirt that covered them for a while before he, to Lucy's astonished embarrassment, dragged himself over and settled the rosy-haired head in her lap. "If they know what they're up against they might bring some Rune Knights... they're good, wouldn't want to fight them myself..." He yawned again, voice growing slurred and indistinct.

"Uhuh... hey Natsu, what are you doing? Get off!" Blushing furiously the girl tried to inch away from the dragon, only to find herself caught around the middle by a pair of stubborn arms as he turned around and whined childishly.

"It's fine, ain't it.. Stay still, don't take my pillow..."

"I'm _not_ a pillow!" she protested loudly and tried to pry him off, with no success. The man muttered something incoherent but didn't move an inch. If fact, he was almost asleep already and didn't react in the slightest to her huffing or glaring.

"Oh come _on_!"

An exasperated sigh couldn't quite stave off the little smile that teased the corners of her mouth as she looked down on the man. How could she stay angry when he looked so peaceful, so very content? His sleeping face was almost cute when all the hard edges and frowns disappeared, the ruddy hair a tangled mess that where it poked up around his scarf-turned headband. _Her_ scarf, come to think of it - for some reason he never took it off even though the cut on his forehead had long since healed, and she had gotten so used to the sight that Lucy didn't even question it anymore.

Realizing that she couldn't get away the girl sighed again and tried to make herself comfortable where she sat, as much as was possible with nothing to lean her back against. Slender fingers hesitated an inch from the dragon's head, then couldn't resist the temptation anymore as he seemed to be asleep and slipped down into the ruddy hair, carding slowly through the soft strands to sort out the knots.

"Even your hair is warm" she smiled quietly to herself, red-cheeked as the flutter of her stomach returned full force.

Why was it that this man made her so nervous, even without trying? It was so silly, especially after having spent so much time together.

"You're a strange man, I never met anyone so oblivious to personal space before... and you never stop teasing and get on my nerves. But... I don't think I ever met anyone I liked so much either..."

Nor anyone it was so _easy_ to like. Oh, the man had flaws, plenty of them! It's just that he made up for each and every one with those bright, dazzling smiles and his honest kindness, to the point where it seemed perfectly alright to forget about the darkness that dwell behind. Her own desire to overlook that darkness was almost as frightening as the times when it took over and some day Lucy would have to find a way to deal with it... but right now she was quite content to close her eyes and see only what she wanted to see.

Thus she missed the sly smile that ghosted over the dragon's lips, and didn't read into the tightened grip around her waist, confident as she was in her assumption that Natsu really was asleep.

Really, the girl _should_ know him better by now.


	12. Chapter 12

"Natsu, what is that?"

"What's what?

"_That_, coming towards us!" Lucy pointed towards the blurry dot far off in the sky, dark and distant and much too large to be a bird.

"Huh? Dunno, I can't see..."

A week had passed since Natsu woke up and alerted the girl to her mistake. One very long and painful week during which she had been tormented, taunted and otherwise teased with not-so-spontaneous pats on the head and declarations of 'You know, I like you too, Lucy!" that always left her beet-root red in the face and in a towering temper. It was a good thing that she now had a book and magical training to occupy herself with, or she might have been forced to dig a very deep pit somewhere to bury herself in.

Fortunately, Natsu was at least considerate enough to leave her alone when she was studying - he was almost as eager for Lucy to learn as she was herself - but he made up for it by doubling his efforts to make her flustered the rest of the time.

To Lucy's great surprise and the dragons smug self-satisfaction - "I told you so, didn't I?" - the princess got the hang of the basics almost right away. Probably more due to Levy's detailed instructions and persistent effort than any magical genius, she was able to grasp the parts of focusing and manifesting magic energy after only a few tries. The first time a soft golden glow appeared around her she was so startled that it took Natsu several long minutes to calm her down, then another good while before he had stopped laughing at her hard part came when she tried to actually use the energy for something; it required more focus and determination than she had realized, and so she had spent the rest of her time meditating and researching the potential summons. She had to find a way to really thank Levy the next time they met, the book she had received really was useful.

She had been busy memorizing the constellations when the strange dot on the horizon caught her attention. Natsu stared at it intently through the narrowed slits of his eyes as it got closer, sudden tension building within him that made Lucy wince as his grip around her tightened painfully.

"Hey, isn't that... _Fuck_!"

She yelped as the man suddenly swerved in the air, just in time to avoid a blast of shredding wind that came hurling towards them. Before Lucy could grasp what was going on he angled himself towards the ground and brought the wings together, dropping them into a steep dive left her screaming in fright. For all that she was used to flying by now he had never done anything like _this_ before!

"N-Natsu!?"

"It's Gajeel!" he screamed over the howling wind, words tearing away from lips that twisted in a vicious snarl. "Can't fight him in the air like this, we gotta... Oh _hell_!"

Lucy screamed again and clutched his shoulders desperately when the leathery wings unfurled with a bang, bringing them to an almost standstill as Natsu kept swearing, eyes on the ground. Daring a glance towards the countryside below the blonde woman gasped as she saw a group of people milling about on and beside the road, their jeering laughs and sneering faces visible even from this distance as they watched the pair hesitate.

"Lucy, think you'll be able to run...?"

"I'm _not_ running away on my own!" she snapped fiercely and smacked a fist into a broad, muscled shoulder. "If you're going to fight then I'll also..!" Letting go of him with one hand the girl dug into a pocket and withdrew the talismans she had made, determination almost - _almost_, because she couldn't deny that she was nervous - drowning out her own doubts.

She had expected him to protest, and was surprised when after a long, measuring look Natsu nodded and flashed her a wild, almost eager grin that made her heart thump harder and faster.

"Alright, let's fight! Just stay close.." And he dropped once more, urged on by the wild, vicious cackle that was approaching from above.

The people on the ground scattered as a deep breath released a giant jet-stream of blazing fire from the dragon's mouth, so hot that Lucy feared she might be incinerated then and there. Forcing herself to focus on the people around them rather than the awe at Natsu's sheer power, she readied herself as he set her down and spun around with a snarl, grateful for his presence behind her back.

Choosing a talisman from the mere handful she possessed, Lucy focused and reached for the warm glow of magic within, let it flow through her hand and into the wooden token where she had carved a small paw print. Snapping her eyes on a short, squat man that came running towards her with a lecherous grin she shouted out the summons;

"Spirit of the Small Dog - Canis!"

It felt as though the magic was _dragged_ out of her fingers. With a gasp Lucy watched as a cloud of swirling darkness formed in front of her, a blackness so deep that it made the stars within gleam all the brighter. It took the shape of a small, lanky dog that bared its misty teeth at the man, who already had begun to laugh at the unassuming creature when it suddenly charged and snapped its jaws around a hairy leg.

The scream that followed was so shrill and shocked that Natsu quickly threw a glance over his shoulder to see what was going on; he cackled gleefully at the sight of the thug and quickly turned back again. His fists clenched as he dealt blow after debilitating blow onto his own attackers - only half paying attention as his focus was mostly on Gajeel, who hovered in the air above waiting to see if he would be needed.

"Keep at it, Lucy!" she heard him say, knowing the proud grin was on his face even though she couldn't see it. "You're doing great!"

If she had time she might have replied, but more bandits were pressing in to replace the first, and the small spirit only managed to bite one other before it faded away, completely without a sound. Already concerned about how long many more times she would be able to do this, Lucy picked out another token and squeezed it in her hand, breathlessly mouthing new words as she waited for her magic to drain away.

"Spirit of the Chisel - Caelum!"

Like a bolt of lightning the area immediately in front of the girl lit up, a pillar of light descending from the skies that made the charging enemies scream and cover their eyes, writhing in pain that didn't appear to have a real source. It lingered for two full heartbeats before it faded, leaving Lucy breathless and staggering as fatigue washed through her.

Behind her, Natsu wasn't having nearly as much trouble. He seemed positively gleeful as he dished out punishment, teeth bared in a vicious grin as he swirled back and forth and let the bandits taste the sharp blows of his fists, tail - even the thrashing wings. Fire danced across his fingers and smoldered in the green grass, but he didn't seem to even be serious yet.

Lucy wished she had his stamina. The number of opponents had dropped rapidly but those that remained had tricks up their own sleeves. A bolt of energy grazed her right arm as she dived out of the way and made her scream, the pain intense as the residue seared and crackled across her skin. She ducked again as a jet of water came flying at her head, only to feel the air go out as a hard, metal-scaled fist drove into her stomach and made her fall to her knees.

"Lucy!" Natsu's scream was riddled with anger and worry as he spun around, charging Gajeel the moment he noticed who it was. He was far away however, their battles having led them away from one another. The black-haired rogue sneered and pulled back his claws for another blow.

"Spirit of the Northern Crown - Borealis!" Lucy gasped, barely able to get the words out.

Knuckles connected against a shield of multicolored lights, inches from the girl's pale face. Purple, blue and green hues caressed her features as she gasped for air, her limbs like led and pain eating away at her arm.

"You... won't reach me!" Clutching the wounded arm with her free hand the girl gritted her teeth and got up, staring defiantly into the eyes of the dragon when he began to look pissed. It didn't matter that her knees quivered and barely supported her, or that she felt as drained as though she had swam across an ocean. Lucy was _not_ going to cry in front of this man again, not _ever_!

"The fuck..?!" Gajeel cursed as the barrier rapidly expanded and pushed him back from her, but quickly gathered himself and readied for another punch. The wall quivered and shrank at the force of the blow, making Lucy swallow nervously; another fist drew back, this time it would surely penetrate...

A roaring breath of flames collided with the metal beast and knocked him off his feet, followed by a heavy blow to the jaw as Natsu leaped after. Lucy nearly sobbed in relief and stared in awe as the dragons fought, the smacking of fists against flesh accompanied by feral snarls, growls and curses.

They didn't stay on the ground for long. Pushing the Salamander off Gajeel jumped into the air and raised himself higher with beating wings, the fire-dragon following in a heartbeat. Their battle turned into a violentl dance of dives, swerves and slashing tails, followed by bursts of speed that left droplets of blood like crimson streaks on the ground. Both had hard scales and incredible endurance, but both dragons also had hard, sharp claws designed to penetrate, rip and tear. As the amount of wounds on Natsu increased her awe faded into worry, soft brown eyes anxious as she followed his flight.

Lucy was dragged out of her study when a sudden hard blow struck her over the back of her shoulders.

Squealing in shock and agony the girl fell to the ground with the talismans scattering from her hands, only realizing that her shield had disappeared when another blow landed on her back. Pain flared up in her aging bruises at the impact and made her roll around to aim a kick at the knee of her assailant, so hard that the dark-haired staggered back with a curse. Trembling and almost as angry as she was afraid she got up on hands and knees, desperately looking around for the tokens while eying the area around her.

It was such a mess.

Smoke wafted thick and dark across the field from the multitude of small fires that still burned, making her cough and wheeze whenever forced to breathe it in. The scent of it was heavy but couldn't completely mask the odor of blood and burned flesh that oozed from the men that lay crumpled on the ground, moaning and groaning in agony in the cases they were awake at all. As far as she could see no one seemed to actually be dead, but it didn't help the wave of nausea that roiled through her stomach, nor the fact that Lucy had caused at least some of the destruction.

Nor did any of these observations withdraw from the fact that one man was still standing, limping and pale-faced yet even angrier now as he came towards her again.

What was she going to do? Lucy was completely drained by now, her talismans hidden somewhere in the tall grasses, out of sight and reach. Even if she did find any she wasn't sure if she could use them again.

Staggering to her feet with the world reeling around her in her exhaustion, the woman slowly backed for every limping step that was taken towards her, eyes never moving from the bearded face of the big, fat man who glared at her with an expression that promised _more_ than a beating if he caught up.

Natsu was too busy fighting in the air to notice what was happening, Lucy was completely drained from her first magical fight, there was no one else around to help her...

The heel of her boot caught on the leg of an unconscious bandit and sent her stumbling.

In a heartbeat the lecherous knave was over her and pushed her onto the ground, two rapid blows to the head leaving her dazed, eyes glazed over. Hard, disgusting hands raked across her body; the princess whimpered in revulsion and clawed at his face to make it stop, a new kind of panic settling like a fog over her addled brain.

Pain was not the only thing she felt as her breasts were groped, disgust too mild a word for the sensation of dirty fingers prying apart her thighs and choking around the neck. Lucy screamed, kicked, bit whenever she got a chance, not even aware of the terrified tears that rolled from her eyes.

Suddenly, between one breath and the next, the air turned the cool, pleasant chill of a summer breeze but the deep, biting, painful freeze of a midwinter night.

Ice bloomed on the skin of the bearded man and with a startled expression he was blown away from the girl as a powerful kick connected with his ribs, snapping a few in the process. Gasping in shock and terror Lucy looked up, thinking it had to be another bandit.

But rather than a big brute of unwashed thug she found a young man around her own age, the dark hair short and wild on his head, almost as black as the cold, narrow eyes. Frost glittered on the white coat and danced in the air around him as he stepped over her, only sparing a brief glance before he approached the coughing, cursing brute on the ground. Ice took shape in his hand as he drew it back, forming into a solid, heavy hammer; there was a nasty, crunching sound as he drove it with practiced efficiency into the head of the man, who immediately crumpled into a heap on the ground. Unconscious.

For several long moments Lucy simply stared at the guy, reeling from the aftermath of surprise and fear and suspicion. Wide, brown eyes followed him warily as he straightened up and turned back, orbs moving down to look at her more closely this time. Slowly the cold faded from the air, until the ice on the fallen rogue was the only evidence that anything had happened at all.

"Are you okay?"

_Was she_? Lucy took a deep breath and felt every bruise, wound and ache make itself reminded. Yet for all that she was hurt and bleeding there didn't seem to be any broken bones, and a quick, panicked examination showed that she was still wearing both shirt and pants, despite the thugs efforts to remove them.

She nodded, rather shakily.

"Good. But really, quite the flashy fight you're having here! Not to mention those brainless idiots..."

She followed his gaze up towards the sky and had to agree when she caught sight of the dragons. And they really _were_ dragons now, like she had been led to think of them from stories and legends. No longer were they men with hands and feet, nor peculiar hybrids with human shape yet tailed and winged.

The Natsu she was used to seeing was gone.

He had been replaced by a crimson lizard the size of a large horse, whose scales glittered and gleamed like burning gems in the sunlight. Sharp teeth shone white and dangerous in the jaws of the wedge-shaped head, stained with the same red liquid that covered claws and seeped from numerous cuts in the hide. Gajeel had become similarly transformed and retaliated with equal ferocity for every blow that landed on the metallic scales. They seemed oblivious to anything except the opponent, the roars of pain and fury so loud that she could feel the air vibrate. They struck a chord deep within her soul. Awe, terror, veneration... there was no word that could accurately describe it.

"Natsu!" A particularly nasty bite to the side of the red dragon's neck made the girl wince and push herself up on her elbows in worry.

The man beside her just shook his head and hunched down, appearing less than concerned.

"Nothing to do but wait until they're done" he grunted. "That flame-brain won't go down easily, but the scrapheap ain't no weakling either - this might take a while."

"You know Natsu?" Lucy didn't even know why she got surprised anymore. Pushing herself up so she could sit she cradled her injured arm and eyed the black-haired man with some interest - the simple fact that he had saved her would normally warrant curiosity, and a possible connection with her best friend only made it grow.

"Unfortunately. We've known each other since we were kids - not that we get along or anything." A slight grimace followed after another glance at the fighting dragons, after which he promptly turned his back on them and eyed herself more intently.

"Uhm... thank you, for saving me" the girl said after a while and pushed the tangled hair from her face, feeling a bit awkward under the close scrutiny. "It was a close call..."

"Eh, don't mention it." There was a minuscule tug on his mouth that might have been a smile, but it faded away just as quickly, returning the expression face to what seemed to be a regular scowl.

"How come you arrived in such a timely manner?" Gradually Lucy felt her wariness settle in face of his calm demeanor, supported by the gratuitous feeling of not being alone in the sea of destruction. She remained where she were even as the guy pulled a napkin from a pocket and began tying it around her bleeding arm, accepting the kind gesture with a smile.

"Heard the battle as I walking down the road" he replied, nudging a chin towards the trail that cut through the fields, broad enough for a wagon where it wound through the landscape. "Thought I wouldn't get involved, but then I saw those guys and figured I'd see what was going on."

"I see. Well, I'm grateful! Really, thank you!" Her smile widened as she spoke, bright and honest and almost happy despite the ugly bruises that colored her face. "I'm Lucy... What's your name?"

The man turned away from the beaming girl with an awkward expression, not quite sure what to do with himself.

"Gray.." It was barely more than a mutter, but Lucy heard and nodded quite happily.

* * *

><p>It was a strange scene if the princess had ever seen one.<p>

Sitting in casual conversation on a battlefield while dragons tore each other to pieces in the sky above - was this what it meant to be a mage? Gray clearly was one if the ice had been any indicator, and he seemed perfectly content where he sat, if perhaps a bit wary whenever a thug showed signs of wanting to get up.

Her own focus turned on Natsu as he raged on with undiminished ferocity. Despite what the ice-mage said she couldn't help but worry at the sight of all the blood, flinches and shudders wracking her whenever her friend was the one taking damage. As time wore on however it grew increasingly clear that the metal dragon was pushed back, forced to retreat time and again to avoid the blazing fire.

Finally a hard whip of a crimson tail tore up a long gash along the ribs, and with a furious roar of frustration Gajeel whipped around in the air and flew off, intent on escaping. Natsu followed with stubborn determination for a while, but when a stream of fire scorched a metal tail without a reaction, he eventually turned back and landed on the ground with a heavy thud that sent tremors through the earth.

Quicker than a thought Lucy was on her feet and hurried down the slope towards him, ignoring Gray's call to take it easy.

She only slowed down once she came close enough to realize just how freaking big the dragon was. Wide eyes took in the long, muscular body and the powerful legs that ended in five-fingered paws, followed the curve of the spiked neck from the heavy head to the very tip of the long tail. Red scales shimmered even when cracked and stained with blood, moving in supple waves as the chest heaved for each ragged breath. Heat stood like a shimmering wall around the beast, heat that seared her mouth and lungs for each bated breath... and the eyes, deep dark pits of black burned like hot coals as they fell on her, wild and dangerous... and rather familiar.

"N-Natsu..?"

She couldn't remember when she had stopped, just knew that she had to fight a sudden urge to run screaming when the dragon lowered the head towards her, eyes closing slowly in a lazy blink. Was that a _grin_ that stretched across the scaly lips? Could dragon's _smile_? Lucy raised a trembling hand and reached for the crimson hide, only to pause in sudden trepidation, inches from a narrow, scale-covered nose.

He was so warm, would she burn herself? Would he even allow it? Those razor-sharp teeth were so very close, could snap around her arm before she even had time to react...

"You scared, Lucy?"

The fair-haired girl gasped, flinching violently where she stood. It was Natsu's voice, but it came from the throat of the dragon like a deep, voluminous purr the girl thought had to echo across the landscape - yet it reached her ears like a soft whisper, teasing and kind all at once as the familiar question slipped from draconian lips.

"M-maybe... a little." The laughter was as faint and breathless as she, weak and tired and full of wonder. "You... really are Natsu, aren't you?"

Gazing into the darkness of his eyes Lucy searched for a trace of her friend, any hint of the man she had spent so much time with. It was hard to accept that this was his true shape rather than the human guise she had come to expect, and yet... the smile that stretched across wide jaws was as glittering and sharply toothy as the mans, the crease of narrow eyes exactly the same - and the laugh he gave was so warm and comfortable and familiar that all doubt suddenly washed away.

"Yeah, I'm still me. More me than before, actually. Still scared?"

_Terrified_, actually. But rather than give in to the feeling she slowly lowered her hand and placed it carefully on the scaly hide, fingers twitching nervously over the hot, sharp, crimson scales. Tears rose in her eyes, fear and anger and relief that the battle was over finally too much to hold back.

"Only a little."

Before she could change her mind Lucy flung herself forward and wrapped her arms around the powerful neck, sobbing helplessly. Natsu seemed surprised but didn't move, instead just stood there quietly as she leaned into him for safety and support. Only when the heave of her shoulders slowed did he shift, dangerous claws very careful as a leg draped over her back, holding the girl close against a broad chest.

"It's alright Lucy, it's over now" he rumbled quietly, more gentle than she had heard him before. "Are you hurt?"

"Mmh, not badly" she sniffed, shaking the blonde head. "I got some help... You're not one to talk anyway, you're so cut up!"

Blood really was everywhere, both his own and Gajeel's. It seeped slowly from scrapes and tears, dripping quietly into the grass. There was blood on her hands too, and on her face and the clothes where she leaned against him, until the once white shirt had taken on almost the same red shade as his scales.

"Nothing major, I'll be fine" Natsu reassured, so confidently that it made Lucy _even more_ worried. "More importantly, you got help? Help from _whom_?"

"If you payed attention to more than what's right in front of you, you'd know already, idiot!"

Dragon and princess turned as one to look at Gray as he came strolling down the hill, hands in the deep pockets of his pants. For some reason he had taken his coat off, leaving him in only shirt sleeves as he stopped, looking mildly curious as he eyed the scene. Lucy felt her face go red and started to back away, but was brought straight back into the embrace by the dragon's paw.

"Why are _you_ here, Gray?" Natsu quipped in a casually insulting tone, narrowing his eyes as he stared down at the human. "I thought you had broken an arm and couldn't work for a while."

"That was a month ago, you stupid ass. I thought _you_ were supposed to be back before then, so why are you here playing around with these small-fries?" He nudged a boot into a nearby thug, making the mans head loll about on the ground.

"Ran into a bit of trouble, we had to cross the Teeth instead of going through Minstral as planned." The shrug of massive shoulders would have set Lucy stumbling to the ground if he hadn't held onto her, but she still glared up at him indignantly.

Sensing that she wasn't in a mood to be manhandled, the dragon shifted - it was the _strangest_ thing to feel him shrink and shift beneath her touch, so foreign it almost made her scream - until he stood in the half-human guise, bruised and bleeding yet somehow fully clothed (she reminded herself to have a talk about _torn shirts_ and _naked chests_ later). He still kept an arm stubbornly around her shoulders, but the change was still an improvement as far as Lucy was concerned.

"What kind of trouble?" Gray's eyes narrowed suspiciously, arms rising to fold across the chest. "Don't tell me..."

"I got into the castle just like I said" the rosy-haired man smirked smugly, eyes glittering with mischief. "You said you wanted proof... so I nicked myself a princess, since she was the most interesting thing around."

The ice-mage stood lost for words, mouth open as he looked from Natsu to Lucy and back again. When the girl nodded in confirmation Gray brought a hand to his face in tired despair, looking so devastated that Lucy had to stifle a giggle.

"Then, you've been dodging soldiers and Trackers until now?"

"It's been a bit anxious" Natsu nodded cheerfully. "But I figure it'll calm down once we get to Isval.."

"You realize that Master will have your head for this, don't you? All the countries around Firoe is in an uproar because they've closed down the borders. No one gets in and out now, and mages are interrogated if they get within a _mile_ of the place."

Guilt struck like a bolt of lightning. Lucy shifted uncomfortably with a heavy heart, lowering her gaze to her feet - or would have, if scaly fingers hadn't hooked beneath her chin and made her gaze up at Natsu.

"Not your fault" he said firmly. "I'm the one who took you away, remember?"

"Yeah, well _technically_..." Gray started, only to be faced with a glare so dark that he actually closed his mouth, a brow raised in query.

"No. Just leave it, Gray."

"Fine, it's your neck." The man shrugged and looked away, suddenly eying the battlefield as if he saw it for the first time. "Either way, we should get going before anyone comes. Would be embarrassing to explain this... for you."

"_We_? What, you're coming along?" Natsu sounded miffed, frowning when the ice-mage shot him a wry grin.

"Hey, I'm heading back as well. No point in splitting up this close to the border."

"You can't fly!" the dragon complained, a whiny edge to the voice. "It'll take _days_..."

"More time for some people to recover - or are you planning on sowing blood all the way to Isval?"

Natsu snorted and looked away, but didn't retort. It made Lucy wonder if he really was as fine as he said, and as they began to walk back up the hill towards the road she kept a close eye on the man. There was a slight limp to his step but aside from that and a hand pressed against the cut in the neck he _looked_ fine and _sounded_ fine, continuously bickering with Gray as they went.

In contrast Lucy was far worse off; she was so tired she could barely set one foot before the other and felt so bruised and battered that it didn't matter whether she had one injury or a hundred. When they reached a small shelter along the road she gratefully slipped onto the ground and leaned back against the wall, unable to comprehend why the sun was still high in the sky and shining like nothing was wrong.

"Sure you're not hurt anywhere else?" Natsu frowned as he hunched before her, looking worried.

"Yeah, I'm just tired." Even talking was a pain, her lips didn't seem to want to move.

"No wonder. It was your first time using magic for real... You did really well though, Lucy!" He pushed a strand of golden hair from her eyes, expression so proud and boastful that the girl had to smile.

"I need more practice" she admitted, "but... it felt good, being able to do something myself."

"You'll get better" he promised readily. "Next time you'll take out guys like those on your own, no problem."

He stood and went off to patch himself up and help Gray with the fire, leaving Lucy to her own thoughts.

While he probably was exaggerating, it nevertheless felt incredibly good to hear such faith in her abilities. They were still so new, so fresh and untested - the girl didn't even want to call herself a mage, not yet. Maybe the day when she would remain standing after a battle, having saved instead of being rescued...

Until then she would study hard and keep doing her best, so that no one would be able to take away this precious new freedom she had tasted and grown so very fond of.


	13. Chapter 13

_Smoke drifted over a burned out landscape, hot and dry and ashen beneath a bloody sunrise. The tall mountains loomed like jagged teeth in the west and as she looked up she saw the clouds fly swiftly over the crimson sky. Her limbs ached and throbbed for every stumbling step, feet catching on rocks and roots that lay strewn across the ground. When her gaze fell on a smoldering, charred log a violent nausea came over her, so strong that she doubled over and retched, the contents of her stomach leaving a sour taste in the mouth. Why logs and rocks would make her feel ill was more than she knew, only a vague sense of unease urging her forward, ever forward. The sooty, searing ground flew beneath her bare feet and scorched the soles for every step, yet while the scenery flew by as though she was running for her life the horizon never came closer. Suddenly something big and scarlet and horribly familiar tumbled from the sky and landed with a force that made the ground heave and groaned. Knowing that she had to hurry, that something bad would happen if she didn't get there in time, she began to run, the legs so very heavy as she pressed on, step after step after step._

_Yet the horizon still didn't come any closer and she was running out of time. Fear like sour biles burned the back of her throat, but just as the world began to move around her again something caught on to her foot and made her stumble, fall, air rushing from her lungs in a painful whoosh. Turning to see what it was that had tripped her a mounting terror blinded her as the logs on the ground turned into burned corpses, the rocks all blackened skulls where swollen eyes stared pale and accusing at her. A branch around her ankle turned into gnarled, twisted fingers that dug into her skin, the charred surface cracking and bleeding crimson tears onto her leg._

_More and more and more it bled and the stains spread up along her naked leg, dying her in the colors of blood and pain and death and all the while the eyes kept staring at her. Screaming she felt searing hot corpse hands crawl all over her, the dead fingers poking and prodding until she wanted to retch again, and as she fought the grip on her shoulders leering skulls kept whispering her name, over and over again._

_Lucy, Lucy, LucyLucyLucyLucyLucyLucyLucyLucyLucy_**Lucy**!

"Lucy! Wake up!"

With a half-choked scream Lucy bolted up from the ground so quickly that Natsu was knocked back, landing on his rear with a huffing grunt. Her hands quivered violently as the girl quickly patted herself over, examining her body and legs - especially the legs! - in a fevered frenzy until she was absolutely sure that the blood and hands and prodding fingers were completely gone. Only then did she allow the shuddering sigh to leave her lungs, the whole body drenched in cold sweat.

"Lucy?" She flinched violently when a warm hand carefully nudged her shoulder and without knowing what she was doing the blonde jerked back and scrambled away, still caught up in the hysteria of the dream to see clearly.

"Hey! Lucy it's me, Natsu. You're safe, it was only a dream!" There was a deep frown on the dragon's face as he came after her, but even though he hunched down by her side he didn't try to touch her again. Concern glowed in his charcoal eyes as he leaned in, finding her eyes and holding them captive until recognition slowly returned their gleam. On the other side of the campfire's glowing embers Gray pushed up on an elbow and rubbed his eyes, frowning as he squinted their way. Lucy hardly noticed, just stared into the serious black eyes of her best friend.

"Na-Natsu..." Teeth clattered so violently in her mouth that speaking was nearly impossible. "Sorry... I'm so sorry Natsu, I let you die. I knew there was no time and I tried to hurry but the hands, they held me back and I couldn't save you, I couldn't..!"

He stared at her as tears welled up in her eyes and began rolling down the cheeks, leaving streaks that glistened over bruised and swollen skin. A deep, painful sob made Lucy clap her hands over her face as her slender frame shook, the fear that clenched around her heart much too real to shrug off.

"Lucy... It was a dream."

The man's voice was quiet and soothing, his words so slow that Lucy wanted to shake him and scream with impatience. No! He had died, it couldn't be...

"I'm alright. Really; see for yourself."

Natsu held out his hands and slowly, fearing it just might prove him wrong, the girl place shaking fingertips against a palm. A warm, strong, slightly rough palm whose skin did not blacken and crumble at her touch, did not bleed or grab or spread its deadly plague onto herself. Then, was he really..?

"See? I'm alive, very real. It's alright Lucy, you're alright." Warm fingers closed around her icy hand, strong and comforting and safe.

Forcing cool night air into her lungs Lucy looked around the camp and slowly nodded when the trees, the grass, the starry sky and Gray's worried expression indeed seemed real enough. When Natsu pulled her into his arms she didn't resist, the satly tears still falling as she buried her nose into the nape of his neck and breathed in the familiar scent. Smoke and pine and sweat and something else that was at once sweet and spicy, like the exotic fruits she had once tasted that filled her with a warm, heady glow reminiscent of liquor.

He held her tightly until her tremors subsided, exchanging puzzled looks with the ice-mage all the while. When the girl eventually took a deep breath and began wiping her face with a sleeve the man loosened his grip slightly, just enough that he could lean back and see her face properly. A slow breeze wafted through the trees and made the leaves whisper and sigh; Gray threw a few twigs on the embers and blew slowly until yellow flames appeared, spreading much needed light and warmth as they consumed the fuel.

"What's this about, Lucy?" The frown was still there, tugging at the broad forehead beneath the perpetual scarf. "Did something happen to make you dream like this?"

She shook her head, but the motion was too jerky, too rapid to warrant any trust. Natsu grasped her shoulders and tried to catch her gaze, but it only made the girl look away, lips pressed so tightly that all trace of color drained away.

"You know anything about this?" He turned to Gray, who shifted uncomfortably and averted his gaze.

"If she doesn't want to talk about it..."

"Lucy? Please..."

He was so kind, so gentle, but the blonde woman just couldn't bring herself to look at him. Swallowing thickly she let her head fall forward until it rested against Natsu's shoulder, savoring the comforts of his warmth as she dragged the depths of her soul for courage. Lucy had a pretty good idea what this dream was about, but even the thought of groping hands, the stinking breath and her own helplessness made her break out in cold sweat.

"One of the thugs.. the last one. I dropped my talismans and couldn't... when he caught up, he did.. he... touched..." A powerful wave of nausea made her clamp her teeth shut, fearing that the convulsion might make her actually retch. Natsu's grip hardened on her shoulders, eyes quickly snapping over to Gray, who nodded with a frown.

"I kicked him off before he could do more than grope, but... I guess that's plenty bad already."

"Yeah."

How could a single word be so filled to the brim with cold fury? Suddenly the man wasn't just warm, he was burning and made the air shimmer and stir around him. The motions were so tense and hefty when he pulled Lucy in tighter against the chest, keept from crushing her completely only by sheer force of will.

"I'm sorry for not noticing" he whispered against her ear, so quiet that only she could hear him. His lips brushed against her skin and made hot air send shivers down her spine, light and tingling - almost pleasant. "I would have come to help..."

"Mmh, I know" she said quietly. "You were fighting too though, it couldn't be helped."

"I won't let anything like that happen again. Not ever."

And she wouldn't let him die, not ever. "Yeah. It's a promise."

The last of the tension seeped from her limbs. Exhaling a soft sigh Lucy shifted until she sat comfortably in the dragon's arms, eyes closed and quite oblivious to the amused smirk of the ice-mage as he regarded the pair. Natsu shot him a sharp glare that threatened with more than words if the other dared to say anything, looking much too content with the situation. Gray let out a quiet snort and thumped back onto the ground, refraining not so much from the dragon's stare as from a reluctance to upset the girl any further. It had only been a few days since the battle and this wasn't the first time she'd had nightmares - though never any so intense as this one, that'd made her thrash and whimper until Natsu felt compelled to wake her up. He understood her half sleeping reaction to his touch better now, but his mouth still thinned into a hard, grim line whenever he thought about it.

"What did you do to the scum?" he asked, eying the dark-haired man as he rolled over, turning a coated back on the fire.

"Knocked him out cold" the human answered, muttering under breath. "Might have cracked a few ribs and frozen his balls too..."

"Still alive then."

The voice was so cold and blood-thirsty that Gray actually sat up again, a muscle working in his jaw as he eyed the dragon warily.

"Hey, calm down, idiot. What's the point of getting riled up over trash like that?"

"What's the point of letting trash live?"

Lucy had listened quietly until now, but when a tone of dark hatred reached Natsu's voice she sat up a bit straighter, more worried than she wanted to admit even to herself.

"I wish you wouldn't be so quick to kill" she whispered, voice pained. She closed her fingers around the cloth of his shirt, throat tight with sadness and unease. "Does human lives mean so little to you?"

She felt the dragon flinch before going still, to the point where she couldn't even feel him breathe for several long minutes.

"Then, are you saying you forgive him for what he did to you?" Natsu sounded angry, his back rigid.

"No, I don't. I'm saying I don't want to carry the burden of his death on top of everything else." Lucy lifted her head until she could look up at the rosy-haired man with a tired expression that went deeper than just physically. "Natsu, please? I thought we had a deal..."

"Sometimes there's no other choice!" he snapped, blazing eyes baring down on her. "This..."

"Is not one of them. The guy is long gone by now and we have more important things to do than chase after him. Right?" Lucy stared back just as intensely, not even flinching when sharp teeth bared in a frustrated growl. "Right?!"

"Alright, alright! Fine! Have it your way." But rather than calming down Natsu let go of the girl quite abruptly and got up, stomping off into the darkness while scorching the air with bursts of flame and foul curses.

Lucy rubbed her arms and averted her eyes, wishing she didn't feel so pathetic. "Why is he so eager to kill people?" she winced. "This isn't the first time... Does he really hate humans that much?"

Gray shifted where he sat, scratching a cheek with a reluctant expression. "There's a reason" he said slowly, "but I don't think I'm the one who should tell you about it."

The girl sighed and pulled a hand tiredly through her hair, combing long golden strands away from the face. "Then I won't prod. It's just..."

"I know" Gray muttered, not very comfortable either. He threw another log on the fire and watched with a deep frown as sparks rose high against the sky, dancing and winking like red stars until they went out.

"Do you think I should...?" Lucy glanced in the direction Natsu had disappeared, fighting against desire to go after him and fear that he might not take her presence well right now.

"Eh, just leave the idiot alone. His stupidity might be contagious, no need to concern yourself. Get some rest instead."

She stared into the night for several long minutes, but when no sign of fire or dragon hinted at where she should go the girl nodded with a sigh and settled down on the ground. "Sorry for waking you" she mumbled, more miserable than she could remember being in a long while.

"Meh, just go to sleep." Gray was already back in his old spot, hands behind the head as he stared up into the sky. "Quit that habit of apologizing for everything - it's damn annoying."

"Sorr... Ah, yeah." She shifted uncomfortably, especially when he laughed silently at her and turned away.

She lay awake for a long time that night in wait for her friend to return. When he finally did Lucy made a big deal of pretending to be asleep, an act that grew very hard to maintain when quiet footsteps approached her curled up form and stopped only inches away. Natsu just stood there for a while, then surprised her completely by hunching down to brush gentle fingers across her purple and greenish bruises, from jaw to cheek to the week old cut on her lip. Lucy felt her heart skip a beat, thoughts reeling from shock and the tickling trail that lingered on her skin where he had touched it.

Then, just as suddenly he was off again, though only went to lay down where he had settled before, wrapped in heavy silence that she didn't quite understand. Tempting as it was to try and talk to him about it, the girl had a feeling that this wasn't the right time or place. So she relented and allowed herself to drift off, vowing to be happy and alert the next morning regardless of whether she was feeling up for it or not. They had a ways to go yet - the road was dangerous enough as it was without adding whining or gloomy faces to it all.

"Ah, there it is! The border station!"

Lucy held a hand over her eyes to shade from the bright sunlight and peered up ahead along the broad, cobbled road. It was scorching hot, not a breeze passed through the trees and the girl felt that she probably looked quite scandalous where she went. Over the course of the past days she had peeled off layer after layer of clothing until nothing remained but the blouse whose sleeves had been rolled back, buttons unfastened to expose a portion of her chest, and the leather trousers had quickly been replaced by the long blue skirt where the hem now only reached her knees, tied up as it had been to relieve her from the heat. She was aware of the eyes that followed her whenever strangers passed by, something that happened more and more often now that the border to Isval was within sight, but this particular time she chose to ignore them in favor for the building that straddled the road up ahead.

Adjusting the strap of the shoulder bag Lucy glanced between the men and offered a slight smile at Natsu, who's excited face seemed fit to burst as he pointed at the wooden structure. "Almost there now!" he grinned as he caught her eye. "Just another hour or two, and then you'll be safe."

"Yeah..." Nodding quietly the girl couldn't help the nervous coiling in her gut.

For every step she took towards the station the more crowded the street became. A small makeshift village of tents sprawled across the green meadows on either side, stretching along the banks of a narrow but torrentous river that marked the border. The bridge leading across to the other side had been incorporated into a kind of gate-house that sat firmly on either bank, a tall and hefty stone structure with shingled roof and narrow windows that breathed officialism and no-nonsense seriousness. While it was quite easy to overlook the heads that turned in the direction of the long-legged blonde and the gazes trailed in appreciation across her voluptuous figure, sweat-glistening skin and tied-back hair that tickled the back of her neck for each step, she found it much harder to stomach the sight of guards uniformed in the colors of Galunar. Their eyes seemed to narrow and intensify when she passed; Lucy imagined snakes crawling across the skin, cold and deadly, and swallowed hard.

"Are you sure there won't be a problem?" she asked quietly and hurried up her steps until she walked closer to the men, more glad for their presence than ever. "Those guards..."

"It's their job to be suspicious" Gray pointed out with an amused grin. "They have no reason to create a fuss, just relax."

Relax? Easier said than done. By the time they reached the open gate that led through the over-hanging structure the girl was a trembling wreck, barely able to appreciate the cool of the shade as they slipped inside, nor the gusts of sweet, moist air that rose from the nearby river. The guards had plenty of reason to stop her, or should have at least seeing as the news of her presence in Galunar must have reached the government by now. Regardless of whether they were interested in handing her back to her father or not, she couldn't shake the feeling that they OUGHT to be interested in a foreign princess that might bring benefits to the nation that caught her - Firoe was just that big a force to be reckoned with, as most of the grain in the northern countries was produced there. Get on their good side and...

"Hey, you three! Come here for a second!"

A very tall, skinny woman approached them with long efficient steps, dressed in guard uniform that sported the insignia of a ranked officer and with more gray than black in her short hair. She was waving a hand imperiously towards the travelers, indicating for them to follow. Natsu and Gray exchanged a look of surprise but altered their course willingly enough, Lucy hot on their heels with a tongue prodding the suddenly very dry insides of her mouth.

"What's it about?" The ice-mage seemed almost bored as he ducked in first through the small door that led into the building itself, followed by Lucy, then Natsu.

Compared to the sweltering heat outside the stone-walled room felt almost cold. The girl rubbed her exposed arms with a soft shudder as her gaze traveled across the space - there wasn't much to see, just a small office with a desk, several chairs and a few shelves containing folders with paper.

"Some routine questions" the woman said efficiently as she stepped up to the desk, rummaging hastily through piles of papers that lay scattered across the surface. "You", she said and shot a glance at Lucy, "match a description we received from a Trackers guild of a wanted person. I have to ask... ah, there it is." Pulling a slightly crumpled sheet of paper from the pile she smoothed out the corners and turned around, holding it up for the three to see. Lucy threw a nervous look at it, then eyed the door behind her back only to find that it had been firmly closed with two burly guards standing on either side.

"Is this you?"

The drawing, for what it was worth, was very good. Whoever made it must have either gotten a very good painting to go by or seen Lucy with their own eyes, because it was her face down to the last mole. The only thing that seemed odd was the fashionable dress and the elegant hairdo, so very far removed from her current sloppy garb and sweaty, unwashed locks. Biting her lip uncertainly she looked from the poster to the woman and then to her two friends who had begun to frown. The quick nod was decidedly anxious, an expression that only intensified when the uniformed woman sighed.

"Then I'm afraid I cannot let you leave. Wanted person Lucy Heartfilia, you are hereby arrested for..."

"Wait a moment!" Natsu interrupted and took a step forward, fists clenching as he scowled at the official. "Lucy has done nothing wrong!"

"That's not for me to decide" the woman replied quite calmly - quite a feat considering the intense pressure she must feel beneath the dragon's intense stare. "I have orders from my superiors to apprehend this person if she appears, and that's..."

"The request came from a Tracker Guild, right?" Gray confirmed, the coated arms folded firmly across his chest - how he didn't melt in the heat was more than Lucy could understand. Personally she felt suffocated just by looking at his heavy clothes. "I'd like to hear the exact request, if you please."

"Very well." The woman began to rummage on the desk again. Lucy sucked in deep breaths and tried to stay calm, but no matter how she tried to make the lump in her throat go away it lingered like a hot coal, preventing her from speaking even though she ought to.

"Ah yes. 'Galunar Trackers Guild hereby request assistance from all border stations in apprehending the wanted criminal Lucy Heartfilia, on the charge of espionage and treason against the realm. She is believed to be headed..."

"I..! I believe there has been some mistake." The woman looked up as Natsu and Gray turned to give her a glance. Lucy swallowed and cleared her voice, making up for the initial squawk by straightening her back and returning the official's gaze, quite firmly. "I am not a citizen of Galunar and as such I cannot be charged with treason. As for the accusation of espionage, that's outrageous! I am simply passing through on my way from Firoe to Isval."

"Is that so. Do you have any proof to back up this statement?" There was a slight crease along her forehead now, and as the woman gazed between the three her fingers reached up unconsciously to tug at the short bangs.

"I can confirm that this is true" Gray quickly said, regaining his initial composure. "As can he." There was a nudge towards Natsu, who nodded firmly, still scowling.

"And you are?" Things clearly weren't going the way the woman had planned. The way she eyed the young men was almost wary, an expression that deepened when Gray pulled something from his pocket and tossed it over to her with a casual flip.

"Gray Fullbuster, Natsu Dragneel, registered mages under the Isval Guild League Association, members of the Dreyar branch guild. We are currently escorting this person from Firoe to Isval."

"She's under our protection" Natsu added in, the lopsided grin that spread over his face a stark contrast to the tense, battle-ready stance.

when bewildered gray eyes turned to her Lucy nodded hastily and tried to look as though this sudden flood of information wasn't new to her at all. She hadn't heard of this Guild League before but by the look of the woman it was a name with impact in the magical realms, because she suddenly seemed much less confident. The guards by the door shifted almost imperceptibly and exchanged a quick glance - the girl made a mental note to interrogate the boys thoroughly once this was over. Sure they had talked of jobs and work and a Master, but she had NOT been informed of any guilds or international reputations...

"W-well I'm sorry, but I have orders to..."

"You appear to have been misinformed" Lucy said and donned a slight, sympathetic smile, a mask of innocent stupidity she hadn't worn for so long that it felt rather uncomfortable on her features. Natsu looked slightly non-plussed as she slipped past him to place a light-fingered hand on the woman's sleeve, all softness and kindness and understanding. "That is undoubtedly me on your poster and it is quite correct that the Trackers Guild have been pursuing me and my companions, but it is for reasons that have no connection to the nation of Galunar at all. As there is clearly something awry with the request, why don't you let the matter rest until you have received proper confirmation? I am simply on my way to a new home in Isval. If after double checking with the Guild, your information is confirmed to be correct, I am sure that the government of Isval will be most helpful. I would not resist an order to be released into your custody..."

The middle-aged woman swallowed and leaned back from the smiling girl as though Lucy held a knife in her hand, looking quite nervous. Eyes darted from Natsu to Gray and over at the guards as though searching for a way out... Only to grit her teeth and push away the slender hand from her sleeve as she straightened up, adjusting her short-coat with snappish gestures.

"Very well, I see your point. It does indeed appear that there is a mis-match in my information" she muttered, avoiding to meet any of their eyes. "I will have to take a statement from all of you in order to double-check, but after that you may leave.

Bloody Trackers, making a mess of things and getting us all in trouble..." She kept muttering under breath as she rounded the table to sit down, a grimace like toothache appearing every now and then.

The boys kept their faces quite straight during the interviews and somehow held themselves together all the way across the bridge. But as soon as the border-station disappeared behind a bend in the road they burst out in such loud and rambunctious laughter that a flock of birds alighted from a nearby grove.

"Great, that was great!" Gray cackled as he slapped his thighs, doubled over from mirth. "Good job Lucy, that was impressive! 'Something awry with..' Oh ouch, can't breathe..."

"'Won't resist release into..' Awh man that was brilliant!" Natsu gasped, looking like he was about to topple over entirely. "You're more terrifying than an army of mages, that jerk was ready to run for her life!"

Lips twitched as Lucy watched the men cheer and laugh, trying to remain calm in face of their obvious amusement. "I don't see what's so funny" she said quite coolly, a brow raised. "I didn't utter a word that wasn't true..."

"That's not exactly... Isval NEVER hand over their citizens to other nations, not even criminals", Gray spluttered, an evil grin on his face. "They can request that someone be put to trial in Isval itself but the whole process is such a pain in the ass that no one ever bothers!"

"Huh. Come to think of it, Natsu did say..." Lucy tilted her head to the side as she thought back, a hand on the chin. He had indeed, and it had been at the back of her mind when she spoke, but...

"Right, but if she had arrested you on false accusations Isval would soon be on the case for interfering with official business", Natsu laughed. "That woman would be in a world of trouble from her bosses either way, so the best she could do was blame it on the Trackers Guild and let us go."

"Oh, so that's why she was so nervous!" Lucy exclaimed, finally realizing why they were so amused. Oh, she had been fully aware that the situation would be sticky for the captain, but now it sunk in just how massive of a threat she had delivered. She clapped a hand to the mouth to stifle the sudden giggle, torn between elation at her own success - more substantial than she had aimed for, indeed - and guilt for doing something so underhanded to the poor woman. The boys laughed even harder and eventually Lucy gave up and joined in, elation gradually taking over until it felt as though she was floating inches off the ground.

They had done it. They had reached Isval, the haven she had been longing for ever since Natsu first mentioned it. She was safe, whole, healthy and protected by laws and kind people and it was such a relief that she felt lightheaded when she suddenly made a pirouette on the side of the road. Natsu ducked to avoid getting the swinging bag smacked into his face and chuckled as he reached in and caught her hand, grinning madly.

"Come on Lucy, let's keep going!"

He dragged her along as he hurried off along the road, forcing the girl to half-run to keep up. Gray rolled his eyes and fell back behind them, leaving her mostly alone with the dragon as they scaled the hill that rose up before them. It was a steep bit of road surrounded by dense forest, but when they reached the crest all trees broke away and lent an unhindered view of the scenery below.

Lucy drew for breath and stared open mouthed at the landscape that spread out before her, wild and beautiful with rolling hills, deep forests and lush meadows where flowers bloomed in mad abandon. The Teeth rose like a jagged blue line to the west and extended north and east all the way to the horizon. In the distance the ground flattened out into a vast plain sloping eastwards, coursed through by rivers and lakes that glittered and glowed under the sun. Even from this distance she could see a few villages huddle by the forest edge, not too different from those she had seen until now but somehow neater, more planned without becoming strict. The road beneath her feet extended onwards like a flattened snake, winding its way among the hills until it disappeared between trees.

Fingers clenching around her hand brought the girl back from her awed study. With a wide smile she turned to Natsu who had been watching her a bit nervously, awaiting a verdict, her eyes glittering in the bright light.

"It's beautiful" she breathed, positively exalted with delight. "I really get to stay here? Feels like a dream..."

"You're very awake!" the man laughed and squeezed her fingers until Lucy winced and nodded, quite convinced. "Yes you can stay, I know you'll love it - the country, the guild, the town..." He pushed a lock of hair from her forehead with the free hand, creases forming around the dark eyes as he smiled down at her. Lucy blushed but smiled back, telling herself that the sudden giddy feeling in her stomach didn't have anything to do with the gesture, or how close the man was.

"You'll have to tell me about all that, I was so surprised when you both began to talk of guilds and..."

"Yeah, sure. No need to hurry, we've got all the time in the world now."

Her breath caught in the throat as he suddenly leaned in close, calloused fingers light against her skin as they slipped back through her hair. Chocolate eyes widened in a face that was growing quite red, staring bewildered into Natsu's as his forehead came to rest against her own. Close, so very close. His breath was hot against her skin, a scent of smoke and spice and the apple cider he'd had during lunch rising in a heady combination that made her head spin.

"Welcome to Isval, Lucy", Natsu said softly as he held her gaze, stroking her over the head affectionately. "Welcome home."

Tears welled up unbidden in her eyes in the wake of the swell of emotion that washed through her, but Lucy quickly blinked them away and just smiled back. There were no words for what she felt right then, no name for all the thoughts that paraded across her mind. All she knew was that everything felt so right and complete and perfect at this very moment, the swell in her chest a result of pure, blissful happiness unmarred by anything. When she spoke it was with breathless joy, pure and bright and as dazzling as the summer sun.

"Mmh. I'm home!"

* * *

><p><strong>Hi guys, thank you for reading this far! I hope you enjoy the story!<br>Due to some personal reasons I might have to take some time off of writing. I have no idea how long I will be away; might be anything from a few days to all of December. I hope you can be patient with me, trust me when I say that I am as eager as any of you to continue with this story. **

**Thank you for all the lovely reviews and comments I have received so far, they truly mean a lot to me. Please look forward to the next chapter! I will post it as soon as humanly possible! **

**/Chan**


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